Chile’s President José Antonio Kast is moving on sex education, abortion limits, and LGBTQ+ rights—policies rights groups say mirror a wider far-right playbook across Latin America.
Chile’s shift under President José Antonio Kast has set off alarms among feminist and LGBTQ+ advocates—less because the goals are brand-new, and more because the methods look familiar.
The concern is not just that Kast wants to reshape school sex education or tighten abortion access.. It’s that Chile may be adopting a regional playbook already tested elsewhere in Latin America. where far-right governments have targeted women’s rights and LGBTQ+ communities while reframing those efforts as matters of “morality. ” “security. ” or “education without ideology.”
A “schools-first” strategy for sex education and “ideology”
In March. Kast began a four-year term with a clear focus on how young people are taught about sex. gender. and relationships.. In 2017. he proposed removing school programs that he said amounted to “propaganda” supporting abortion and “gender ideologies.” More recently. he pledged to “guarantee education without ideologies. ” language that critics say functions as a political filter—what counts as legitimate education. and what gets treated as harmful.
That approach stands in contrast to the previous left-wing administration of President Gabriel Boric. whose government moved in January to revive a bill expanding sex education.. The measure cleared a congressional education committee in March and advanced. but it still needs additional legislative steps to become law—steps that Kast-aligned lawmakers may be positioned to slow or redirect.
Rights advocates and clinicians warn that the impact could be more than symbolic.. When sex education is stripped back, the consequences often land on people who can least afford to seek private alternatives.. In a country where about 80% of Chileans support abortion in at least some circumstances. activists argue the “education” changes and abortion restrictions work as a package—reducing access to information on reproductive health while narrowing the pathways for care.
Online harassment becomes a political tool
Chile’s debate has also been accompanied by a darker pattern: targeted digital abuse.. Feminist organizers and sex-education advocates say social media attacks intensified as Kast’s campaign gained momentum.. One of the most common tactics. they say. is to discredit activists as dangerous or criminal—then push them out of public debate through intimidation.
The director of an organization advocating for comprehensive sex education. Martín de la Sotta. described coordinated online harassment that included personal photos shared with accusations meant to silence him.. Others say the pattern extends beyond individual activists.. Emilia Schneider. a transgender member of Chile’s federal legislature. has also faced online harassment tied to pre-transition photos circulating under misleading names.
For everyday Chileans. digital hostility can quickly become offline fear—especially for those who speak publicly about gender. reproductive rights. or violence.. When harassment is normalized, activism becomes riskier, and institutions can feel pressured to pull back.. The result is a chilling effect that reshapes the public square without needing a single court decision.
Abortion restrictions tighten as institutions reshuffle
Kast has called for a total ban on abortion—even in cases of rape—framing it as protection of life “from conception to natural death.” Under current Chilean law. abortion is permitted only in three situations: when the life of the pregnant person is at risk. in cases of rape. and in cases of nonviable pregnancy.. A bill proposed during Boric’s government that would expand access—allowing abortion up to 14 weeks—has continued moving through Congress. but it faces substantial obstacles in committees led by Kast supporters.
Doctors and legal advocates say one of the most consequential issues may be how conscientious objection plays out under an increasingly restrictive environment.. Even before Kast took office. nearly half of obstetric professionals in public hospitals reportedly declared themselves conscientious objectors in 2023 in rape cases.. Under a government opponents describe as authoritarian and anti-rights. some fear objectors may gain more room to refuse—pushing patients toward unsafe alternatives.
Institutions dismantled, language policed
Beyond education and abortion, Kast’s administration has also moved to change the institutional landscape.. Critics point to the removal of officials tied to feminist foreign policy and to the appointment of Judith Marin. who leads the Ministry of Women and Gender Equality and has campaigned against abortion.. Supporters of the change argue it reflects Chile’s values; opponents see it as the weakening of policy capacity around gender equality.
The same “roll back the infrastructure” idea has appeared across the region.. In Argentina, for example, the government dissolved the Ministry of Women, Genders, and Diversity.. In Brazil. the women’s ministry was renamed and reorganized after Bolsonaro took office in 2019. replacing “gender” with “family” in institutional framing.. In El Salvador, legislative changes eliminated parts of the machinery designed to address women and gender equality.
A separate but connected tactic is language control.. Activists argue that banning or discouraging inclusive terms can make public institutions less able—or less willing—to recognize gender diversity and protect LGBTQ+ rights.. Kast. as a lawmaker. has criticized inclusive language and urged Chileans to “speak properly. ” language rights advocates say is meant to close the door on how identity and equality are discussed in public life.
Why Chile’s case matters—and where it could go next
For MISRYOUM readers, the through-line across this region is how far-right movements translate ideology into governance.. What begins with classroom content can end up reshaping health access, weakening legal protections, and narrowing public conversation.. When budgets tighten and services shift under an “emergency” governing style. opponents say reproductive care and sexual health can be treated as less urgent—even when the demand for them does not disappear.
The U.S.. political relevance is indirect but real: American lawmakers. advocacy groups. and voters increasingly track these developments because they intersect with election-year debates over social policy. human rights. and religious influence abroad.. Chile’s trajectory also offers a cautionary lens for how quickly institutions can be reoriented once “education. ” “language. ” and “safety” become the accepted justifications.
For now, the next test in Chile is legislative.. Whether the abortion-expansion bill gains momentum—and whether sex education reforms move in the direction Kast supports—will determine how much of the region’s playbook is imported into Chile’s legal and social systems.. Rights groups say they are bracing for more changes.. Kast’s approach suggests they may not be waiting long.