Mexico issues first gender non-binary birth certificate

The landmark moment follows an arduous legal battle between non-binary activist Fausto Martínez and the National Electoral Institute.

Top News . Written by Alice Linehan.

Left: an image of Fausto Martínez, Right: a scan of the first non-binary birth certificate in Mexico
Image: Twitter: @FaustoGlow

Mexico has issued the country’s first birth certificate with a non-binary gender marker in what is a historical moment for the nation’s LGBTQ+ community. Activist Fausto Martínez received the groundbreaking document from the Civil Registry of Guanajuato on February 11, 2022.

Martínez originally applied to have their sex marked as ‘NB’ on official documentation in September 2021, a request which was denied by the National Electoral Institute (INE). Following the refusal, the 26-year-old teamed up with the Executive Director (Juan Pablo Delgado) of Amicus – an organisation dedicated to defending and promoting Mexico’s LGBTQ+ community.

Thus commenced a legal battle, and in January of this year, the court ruled in Martínez’s favour.

The activist took to Twitter to celebrate the moment, stating: “I have always said what is not named does not exist. For this reason, the transcendence of this fact, the Mexican state recognises that non-binary people exist and with that we are subject to rights and obligations.”

Speaking to local news agency EFE, they added: “It is a collective achievement of non-binary people in Mexico, that our existence is legally recognised with all that that implies, making us a legal entity with rights and obligation.”

Although the ruling is only applicable to Martínez, they are hopeful that other non-binary people in Mexico will be able to similarly amend their birth certificates in the future.

In October 2021, Mexico’s North American neighbour, the USA similarly issued its first fully gender-inclusive passport with an ‘X’ gender marker. It was administered to an intersex Navy veteran, Dana Zzyym, who upon receiving the document stated: “I almost burst into tears when I opened the envelope, pulled out my new passport, and saw the ‘X’ stamped boldly under ‘sex’.”.

It is expected that the USA will offer the same option to any gender-non-conforming American seeking a passport from early 2022.

© 2022 GCN (Gay Community News). All rights reserved.

Support GCN

GCN has been a vital, free-of-charge information service for Ireland’s LGBTQ+ community since 1988.

During this global COVID pandemic, we like many other organisations have been impacted greatly in the way we can do business and produce. This means a temporary pause to our print publication and live events and so now more than ever we need your help to continue providing this community resource digitally.

GCN is a registered charity with a not-for-profit business model and we need your support. If you value having an independent LGBTQ+ media in Ireland, you can help from as little as €1.99 per month. Support Ireland’s free, independent LGBTQ+ media.

0 comments. Please sign in to comment.

Popular News

All News