Once changes are assimilated, it is easy to relativize or, worse, forget the efforts of those who created them in the first place. It arises from an attempt to request a capital release for the LGTBI movement in Spain ‘Zero is the magazine that pulls a country out of the closet’a two-part documentary series Movistar Plus+ opens the 28th this WednesdayIt’s Gay Pride’s day.
“I was chatting with a couple of unborn gay men in their twenties when the magazine came out, and they blamed me,” he explains. Mario Suárez, former first fellow of ‘Zero’, same editor-in-chief from 2003 to 2005 and now producer of the series. “For example, they complained about the superiority of the musculoca, which at the time was all we could be to achieve a set of goals. They showed such a lack of knowledge that I said… It can’t be. It can’t be that these people just didn’t know what happened twenty years ago”.
In the series he directed Damien Einstein (‘Galacticos’, ‘Destiny Confidential’) and wrote Diego SabanesThe history of the magazine, which was founded in Madrid in 1998, A history of the process of social, political, and cultural change that culminated in 2005, when Congress passed the same-sex marriage law.; or in 2012, three years after the publication of ‘Zero’ was stopped, whichever way you look at it, the Constitutional Court dismissed the PP’s objection to this progress towards equality. “A struggle for the rights to which society has clearly advanced is over,” says Suárez.
a real forum
‘Zero’, a kind of fanzine made by aspiring journalism students from Complutense, has become a glossy magazine with national distribution: definitely The only window into the possibility of a gay collective for people in every corner of Spain who feel lonely and have to hide their identities.. There used to be 3-4 page letters, making it a real forum. “There was an urgent need for communication – explains Suárez–. And we connected a lot of homosexuals, connecting what was happening in Madrid with what was happening in other provinces. It served as a unifier. Several factors coincided to build community: the rise of Chueca, the emergence of ‘Zero’, or Aznar’s end of the second legislature with Ana Botella as a bulwark in Madrid“.
Readers of the magazine can head to the newsroom to meet those responsible, their ties to another possible world, people like Suárez himself, or other speakers in the documentary: Miguel Angel Lopez, whoever the director is; photographer Eduardo PV Rubaudonadeu, (strong, provocative) cinematographer LaChapelle; assistant director Ricardo Flamesresponsible for the political line or Miguel Banon stylist(s).
coming out of the closet on paper
They also speak with the necessary pride the protagonists of some of their most emblematic covers, such as the choreographer. Nacho Duato or server Jesus Vazquez (inside, crucified like Jesus Christ, in reference to the treatment he was subjected to after being unjustly involved in the Arny case), both publicly come out of the closet in ‘Zero’ or the versatile Boris Izaguirre, publication columnist. “They are proud to be a part of our history and therefore the history of their group,” says Suárez. “Now they realize that this action left a mark, it was brave, it was necessary for thousands of people… It was small steps to reach the end.”
Other important covers featured brave representatives of institutions that unfortunately anchored machismo: let’s remember the lieutenant general of the army Jose Maria Sanchez Silvaalso photographed in uniform or deceased Catholic priest pepe manteroexcommunicated for appearing in the magazine.
Little by little, from almost no one answering the phone in the ‘Zero’ newsroom, they called José Luis Rodríguez Zapatero to offer them another interview (an interview from 2008 after one aired in 2002 and 2005). Gaspar Llamazares, former general coordinator of Izquierda Unida, was previously featured on the cover. Pasqual Maragall He posed there with the title ‘plural society’ in 2003 when he was a socialist candidate for the Generalitat and including his dream.
There’s only one thing left to do
The contribution of ‘Zero’ is indisputable. However, when we look at the news, we can believe that half of the road we have walked has been wasted. According to data from the State Federation of Lesbians, Gays, Transsexuals and Bisexuals (FELGTBI) in its ‘State of Hate 2023’ report presented last month, around 280,000 people have been assaulted for their sexual orientation or identity over a period of time. of the last five years. “I believe there is not a single homosexual who has not been subjected to some kind of aggression,” says Suárez. “Just as all women feel abused, we homosexuals have been subjected to some kind of harassment, some kind of insult. Beyond these crimes that can be reported, there are many attacks from school. And to prevent these from continuing, you have to start from there, from the bottom up.“.
Súarez’s words about the risks of the Vox and PP alliance for 23J are fearful but also hopeful. “I think some legal steps cannot be undone. The problem arises from backtracking in education or integration policies. Or in a not-yet-well-established trans law“Many politicians and voters better devote a few hours of their lives to watching ‘Zero’, the magazine that makes a country come out of the closet.
From the crucified Jesús Vázquez to the first gay colonel: four iconic covers
Nacho Duato (1999): “He was one of the first to speak openly about his sexuality, about his fears as a teenager, and also from a position as director of the National Dance Company.”
Jesus Vazquez (2000): “The most beautiful man on television confessed to being gay after going through a public ordeal. This is a very brave position that has paved the way for many other gays in the professional industry. It was a first.”
José Maria Sanchez Silva (2000): “He knew he was playing with a macho and homophobic establishment, and he paid the price with brutal harassment until he retired from public life. His bankruptcy was one of the most important in Spanish history. There are a few even today. There are those from within the army who speak with such determination,” he said.
Jose Luis Rodriguez Zapatero (2002): “A necessary cover-up when needed. He spoke loudly and clearly about how to make us all equal before the law. His guise was an achievement of social change, which was already real industry conservatives from his own party and other political formations”.