The chords and notes from the Tijuana Gay Men’s Chorus spilled out from the basement of the red brick Casa de la Cultura and into the still night.
Chorus director Edgar Gheno leads rehearsal of the Tijuana Gay Men’s Chorus at the Casa de la Cultura on Aug. 24, 2022.But there is also a larger mission: to raise the profile of the LGBT community at a time when there have been advances and set-backs. Locally, the legal right for same-sex couples to marry in Baja California has only been codified in the state constitution for one year, since August 2021. Before that, same-sex couples had to obtain a court order to marry because the constitution banned marriage for opposite sex couples.
Francisco Madrid, a 36-year-old tenor who sings in the chorus, says the Tijuana Gay Men’s Chorus is aimed at music and art, but it is also helping overcome stigmas that are still prevalent in Tijuana about the gay community. Many see singing as more than a hobby. Madrid said he’s been going on auditions and singing and dancing at performances for 20 years. “It’s a passion. It’s something I want to do with my life,” he explained.