Puerto Rican Activists Stage Fast for Rights
Washington Blade,
September 3, 1999
SAN JUAN, Puerto Rico - On Wednesday, Sept. 1, a pro-Gay group began a
48-hour fast to protest Puerto Rico’s sodomy law, according to a press release issued
by the San Francisco-based International Gay and Lesbian Human Rights Commission. The law,
formally known as Article 103, provides for sentences of up to 10 years in prison for
consensual same-sex relations.
The fast is reportedly taking place in front of Puerto Rico’s Capitol, where the
U.S. commonwealths anti-Gay laws were enacted. The protest was part of a Puerto Rican
institution called "Expressions at 5 o’clock," a weekly demonstration in
front of the Capitol on Fridays at that time. The fast is scheduled to end today, Sept. 3,
at 5 p.m. On the protester’s behalf, the IGLHRC is asking members of the Gay
community to support the protesters in their fight against Article 103 by contacting the
presidents of Puerto Rico’s legislative bodies to call for a repeal of the law.
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