The intercultural mediation service managed by Suara Cooperativa promotes a series of artistic and reflective actions with inmates to make sexual diversity visible and defend LGTBIQ+ rights
Art, reflection, and collective commitment have come together these days at the Mas d’Enric Penitentiary Center to commemorate the International LGTBIQ+ Pride Day with various actions organized by the intercultural mediation service, managed by Suara Cooperativa.
These actions, unfortunately, are more essential than ever in a world where attacks against LGTBIQ+ people are on the rise, rather than decreasing. This is recorded by the Observatory Against LGTBI-phobia, which in its report on the State of LGTBI-phobia in Catalonia points out that in 2025 a total of 353 incidents were registered, representing 11% more than the previous year when this figure stood at 318.
For this reason, this intercultural mediation service believed it was necessary to carry out different activities. One of them consisted of transforming the common space to fill it with life and activism. Inmates repainted a pedestrian crossing on the ground with the colors of the Pride flag. This pedestrian crossing, which had already been painted years ago, had deteriorated over time and has now been restored to show that the path of respect for diversity must be walked by all of us together.
On the other hand, in the women's module, intersectionality and gender perspective took center stage, as a mural was hung with the slogan: “Mas d’Enric, Women’s Module, with LGTBIQ+ Pride, 2026”. A message that was surrounded by words such as “Respect” or “Stop Homophobia”.
Reading of the manifesto
The actions, whose impact can still be seen at the center, took place on June 28th and were accompanied by the reading of a manifesto to contextualize the protest banner. In this context, the manifesto highlights that, despite progress in terms of equality, many people still fall victim to discrimination, violence, and rejection, while the 353 incidents recorded in 2025 represent the highest figure since records began.
“Behind each number, there is a person, a story, and a right that has been violated,” the manifesto claims, while also emphasizing that “this mural aims to remind us that respect does not understand differences and that diversity is not a threat, but a wealth that makes us grow as a society. The freedom to be oneself should not be a privilege, but a guaranteed right for all people.”
Precisely, this is what is pursued by the intercultural mediation services of Suara Cooperativa, where we promote dialogue and respect for diversity. Among other tasks, we manage potential conflicts that may arise within a penitentiary center from a culture of peace, which also encompasses prevention and provention—meaning, equipping ourselves with tools to face the potential conflicts we may encounter in an environment.
Therefore, from our intercultural mediation services, we carry out actions like the ones we materialized on June 28th, Pride Day, but which we began to develop days before to work with inmates on LGTBIQ+ rights and the importance of respect for diversity, aiming to raise awareness and sensitivity to reduce attacks and/or discrimination against the community.
