Homosexuality is no longer a "social danger"
Spain, 1978: homosexuality is no longer considered a "social danger". But the community was still far from free.
On 26 December 1978, a law was signed in Spain that seems unremarkable at first glance. It amended Franco's Law on Social Danger and Rehabilitation and removed a single point from it: those who committed "homosexual acts".
The law dated from 1970, the last years of the dictatorship. It treated homosexuality not as an ordinary crime but as a danger to society that had to be "cured". Those caught could be sent to a re-education institution, banished from their home town or placed under supervision. Two prisons were set aside specifically for gay men, Huelva and Badajoz. Survivors report beatings, rapes and electric shocks.
Franco's death in November 1975 initially changed little. The amnesties of the following years freed political prisoners, but those considered "socially dangerous" stayed behind bars. The pressure came from the young gay and lesbian movement. Its first Pride demonstration marched through Barcelona in 1977, while the law was still fully in force.
The reform came in the days of the new democratic constitution and ended targeted legal persecution. But the queer community was still far from free. The police now switched to the offence of "public scandal". Trans women in particular continued to be arrested, some dozens of times. This back door only closed years later.
Today, Spain is considered one of the most open countries in Europe; marriage equality arrived as early as 2005. The history of the "socially dangerous" is a reminder of how young this freedom is. And of how many people paid a high price for it.