Foreign Secretary Marcelo Ebrard announced that, starting today, Mexico's consulates will be able to issue birth certificates to trans people; they will no longer need to travel to Mexico for this purpose.
"We are talking about people in the United States whom today the Mexican State is freeing from a semi-clandestine existence and permanent marginalization and all kinds of violence," said the Foreign Secretary.
The Foreign Secretary made the announcement during a ceremony that was held simultaneously at the Mexican consulate in Orlando, where the first birth certificate was delivered. He reiterated the importance of issuing this type of birth certificate, saying, "This isn't a piece of paper, it's something that changes your life, which means that your freedom and dignity are acknowledged.”
During the ceremony, Foreign Secretary Ebrard presented the "Manual on issuing birth certificates to amend gender identity in Mexico's consular offices abroad." These birth certificates will ensure access to the right to identity, a name, and the free development of personality for a historically vulnerable population: LGBTTTIQ+ migrants.
In his remarks, the Secretary recounted the fight for equal rights in Mexico, starting with the abolition of slavery to the right of equal marriage and the legal interruption of pregnancy. He said that, with these birth certificates, the Mexican government demonstrates its respect for human dignity and ends the clandestine existence and marginalization of trans people abroad. "This recognition encompasses the recognition of people's freedom and their dignity"..."We must build societies where there is not just tolerance, but coexistence," he declared.
The Chief Officer for North America, Roberto Velasco, spoke about how issuing these birth certificates in acknowledgement of a new gender identity is necessary to ensure the human rights of freedom, dignity, non-discrimination, identity, the free development of personality and nationality. "This event also serves to remind us that we, the authorities, have a duty to promote, respect, protect and guarantee human rights under the principle of progressive realization," he concluded.
The Director General of Consular Services, Jaime Vázquez Bracho, discussed the legislative process, the partnership with civil society and the legal precedents that led to the new law that will allow Mexico's 67 consulates and 80 embassies to issue birth certificates that recognize gender identity. “What brings us together today is much more than just a document that recognizes rights; it is the vindication of a historic struggle against legal and social systems that have condemned trans people to ostracism and to terrible situations of violence. Today we say to you: we see you, we recognize you and we and Mexico's consular network will protect you," said the Director General.
The event featured a live link with the Mexican consular offices in Orlando, where Ambassador Ana Luisa Fajer and Consul Juan Sabines delivered the first birth certificates to trans people abroad.
The Foreign Ministry officials were also accompanied by Senator Martha Lucía Micher Camarena; Federal Deputy Salma Luévano; Juan Pablo Delgado, from the AMICUS civil society organization; Jessica Marjane, from the Trans Youth Network; and Genaro Lozano, activist and ally. The event was also attended by the trans community.
With these actions, the Foreign Ministry reaffirms its commitment to creating safe spaces for the LGBTTIQ+ community in all of its consular offices, which, since 2019, have performed marriages for all individuals outside of Mexico, regardless of their gender.
