What is “A Journey of Peace”?
A Journey of Peace is the first multimedia repository of memories from LGBTQ+ individuals who are victims and survivors of the Colombian armed conflict. This website is one of the results of Colombia Diversa’s years-long work towards building a peaceful country. It brings together various testimonies that demonstrate how prejudice motivated and intensified violence against the dignity and lives of LGBTQ+ people across the territory. We believe these stories, each adapted to the format that best conveys the protagonist’s intentions, serve as a reminder that a peaceful country cannot exist as long as discrimination persists, and that LGBTQ+ people have much to share.
How did we build it?
The testimonies you find in A Journey of Peace have gone through several steps in their construction to protect their protagonists and avoid replicating victimizing narratives. After an initial interview conducted in a safe space, the Colombia Diversa team proposed a format that respectfully reflected what was shared. This approach is key, as it shows that our testimonies cannot be homogenized; each one reflects its unique difference.
At the same time, we developed a navigation concept that allows each person to choose their own path. For example, they can take a full journey from “Leave Home” to “Travel Postcards,” selecting a story at each step, or they can stay entirely within one section to explore it in depth. In this way, no two journeys are alike, and each person can find their own path as they decide along the way.
Exhibitions
A Journey of Peace has also developed a version in the form of a traveling installation, as part of Colombia Diversa’s commitment to broadening the conversation about LGBTQ+ individuals in the context of the armed conflict across different regions of the country. In 2024, this exhibition visited Florencia, Villavicencio, and Cúcuta, and in the coming years, it will continue to travel to other areas of Colombia to provide a broader and deeper perspective on the armed conflict. Through this initiative, A Journey of Peace invites new forms of interaction and understanding of its content, whether through collective reading or pieces designed to engage each visitor individually.
