Description
The Colombian Civil War featured significant civilian victimization, notably by government-aligned paramilitaries targeting perceived guerrilla sympathizers. A puzzling aspect of the war is the targeted violence against LGBT populations, who were not linked to any ideology or main conflict cleavage. Despite this, paramilitary groups targeted LGBT individuals with notable brutality. This unique pattern raises questions: Why would paramilitaries direct resources toward targeting a social minority not clearly involved in the conflict? Why did the characteristics of this violence vary, and why was it so brutal? This paper proposes a theory of wartime anti-LGBT violence, examining paramilitary actions in Colombia through a comparative analysis of two paramilitary blocs. It reveals that variations in violence stemmed from differing paramilitary efforts at social transformation within local communities. This theory enhances our understanding of wartime social processes that transcend conventional political motives, reinforcing the importance of diverse perspectives in studies of contentious politics.
