The celebrations brought many to tears | Photo: Facebook/CNC3 Television
Earlier today, the Caribbean nation of Trinidad and Tobago made history.
Their high court decriminalized gay sex when they ruled Section 13 of the Sexual Offences Act, which made anal sex illegal, was unconstitutional.
The lawsuit was first brought forward by Jason Jones. He sought to overturn elements of this Act and give LGBTI people within the island nation their right to freedom and privacy.
Many people from the community anxiously waited outside for the ruling to come down.
When it finally did, they erupted into cheers and celebrations. The moment is truly a sight to behold.
LOVE IS LOVE – THE MOMENT MEMBERS OF THE LGBT COMMUNITY FOUND OUT ABOUT THE RULINGMembers of the LGBT community celebrate the court ruling today.Download our new app! 📲 www.cnc3.co.tt/app
Posted by CNC3 Television, Trinidad and Tobago on Thursday, April 12, 2018
People waved flags and signs and there was more than one person who shed tears over the news.
Then they began chanting ‘Love is love!’ and the impact of the ruling became overwhelmingly apparent. This changes lives in Trinidad and Tobago.
A long time coming
The law was a holdover from Trinidad and Tobago’s time as a British colony.
The nation finally became its own republic in 1976. When parliament rewrote the Sexual Offences Act in 1986, they increased the punishment for sodomy to 10 years in prison. In 2000, they increased it again to 25 years.
Proponents of the Act tried to defend it by using the ‘saving clause’, which states British rules can’t be changed after independence.
However, since parliament already drastically changed the Act, that argument became moot.
Now, LGBTI people of the nation have secured a major victory.
