Mexico decriminalised male homosexuality as long ago as the 1860s, under its brief Napoleonic French occupation. In 1871, Mexico’s new Penal Code contained no overt references to male homosexuality, although lesbians and gay men both were often harrassed and imprisoned under discriminatory “public indecency and immorality” laws, which were repealed as recently as 1998.

Before the arrival of the Conquistadors in the sixteenth century, things were different. In pre-colonial days, Xochiquetzal was the Mexican deity of same-sex relationships and sex work. S’he was intersexed, but had a male aspect, Xochpili, who presided over male same-sex relationships and male sex work. Unfortunately, the Spanish invaders initiated a reign of terror, instituting brutal auto da fes which burnt any gay men found at the stake.

Even after the Napoleonic interlude theoretically decriminalised homosexuality, soliciting laws were still abused to target gay men, lesbians and sex workers. In 1901, there was the first recorded raid on a Mexico city drag ball, and the first Mexican gay bars appeared in the thirties, lasting until an ‘anti-vice’ crusade closed all of them in 1959.

Happily, though, Mexico has outpaced its northern neighbour, the United States, since those days. Although homophobic violence and police corruption are still problems, Mexico initiated nationwide antidiscrimination laws in 2001, and the country’s first (lesbian) LGBT legislator, Patria Jimenez, was elected for the Party for the Democratic Revolution in 1997. As yet, only Mexico City and Coahuila state have civil union laws, although Colima, Michacan, Jalisco, Guerrero, Mexico State, Puebla and Veracruz are debating them. While Puebla has problems with aggressive Catholic antigay prelates, and Jalisco’s civil union attempts have stalled for the time being, Michacan and Veracruz may soon pass theirs.

Insofar as the scene goes, Mexico City’s Zona Rosa (Red Zone), Monterrey, Tijuana and Guadalajara all have thriving gay venues.

And then there’s “SuperGay!” SuperGay is a colourful superhero/wrestler hybrid with a rainbow cape and a facemask. He fights for truth, justice and Mexican LGBTs, just as his companions SuperBarrio defends the poor, and SuperAnimal defends animal rights, while a further companions fights for the rights of underprivilged children. There’s a fabulous story about this individual in the first issue of the English-language edition of the European gay magazine, Winq.

In some ways, Mexico is some distance ahead of the United States, which should give one pause for thought when it comes to the anglocentric perspectives of western LGBT communities.