Javier Sierra, mayor of Icod de Los Vinos, is fed up with receiving homophobic attacks. After continuous harassment, including graffiti in the town’s central square and insults on social media, the head of the Icod City Council, one of the most populated in the north of Tenerife (with over 22,000 inhabitants), has taken to the same social media to denounce it.
The mayor attaches two photos with messages that read “Javi Sierra is gay” and “Sierra, we do not want you”, as well as a screenshot of a message he received on social media stating: “Use the money to fix the town, faggot”. To these images, he adds a comment that starts with: “Like these, I receive some messages daily. Also, in the form of graffiti on the walls of Plaza de Andrés de Lorenzo Cáceres (October 2023) or outside my house (August 2017)”.
Javier Sierra adds on his social media profiles: “I understand politics as a vocation of service to my people, always with respect for all ideas and from the freedom of each person to support the option they like most, but there are lines that cannot be crossed. Disagreement is possible but, certainly, not like this. No one deserves this kind of attacks”.
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The mayor of Icod, who assumed office last summer following municipal elections in which he made Alternativa Icodense the most voted force, details: “I am very proud of who I am and where I am, the result of my effort and with the support of many people who believe in me and in the team of people who accompany me. We are going to continue working to improve Icod and to ensure that education, respect and tolerance for different ideas remain our best flag. Yes, with great pride. Thank you for making me a little stronger”.
Javier Sierra, mayor of Icod de los Vinos. / E. D.
Sierra has reported these homophobic attacks to the Guardia Civil. “The cup has run over. I have been enduring this harassment for months. This cannot continue like this. That’s why I posted this denouncement-comment on my social media”. The leader of Alternativa Icodense, who was previously a councillor in the same council with the PSOE, believes that “we must take the step and report” because this kind of behaviour “can even lead to issues in schools against students who do not want to play ball or those who prefer playing with dolls”.
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“I have taken a step forward to raise awareness“, emphasizes Javier Sierra, who invites the rest of the residents to report if they experience derogatory treatment, because “there are institutions, like this city council, and people who will support and defend the right to be whatever one wants”.
