Political Parties File “Hate Crime” Complaints against Catholic Campaign for Down Syndrome Children
On 27 March 2025, political parties in Córdoba filed complaints against a Spanish Catholic lay association, over public campaigns for the protection of Down syndrome babies and addressing the meaning of womanhood. The parties alleged possible “hate crimes” and called for the posters to be removed. Prosecutors later dismissed the complaint concerning the second campaign, while no public decision has been identified regarding the first.
On 27 March 2025, the municipal groups of the Partido Socialista Obrero Español (Spanish Socialist Workers’ Party, PSOE) and Hacemos Córdoba filed complaints against the Asociación Católica de Propagandistas (ACdP), a Spanish Catholic lay association, over two public campaigns addressing the meaning of womanhood and the protection of people with Down syndrome. The parties alleged that the campaigns could constitute “hate crimes” or violations of fundamental rights and called for the posters to be removed.
The first campaign, ¿La mujer nace o se hace? (“Is a Woman Born or Made?”), was launched by ACdP around International Women’s Day and displayed in 44 Spanish municipalities. It presented the association’s Catholic understanding of the nature and dignity of women and criticised contemporary attempts to separate womanhood from biological sex. A private complaint against the campaign had already been submitted on 4 March, before the political complaints were filed later that month.
ACdP launched a second campaign on 19 March to mark World Down Syndrome Day. Posters displayed in 64 municipalities asked: Hoy me felicitas, ¿mañana me abortarías? ¿No te parece un poquito hipócrita? (“Today you congratulate me, but would you abort me tomorrow? Does that not seem a little hypocritical?”). The campaign drew attention to the contradiction between publicly celebrating people with Down syndrome and the high number of abortions following prenatal diagnoses.
On 23 March, PSOE announced that it would extend its complaint to include the Down syndrome campaign. Political groups in Oviedo also demanded the removal of the posters, while Izquierda Unida–Convocatoria por Oviedo filed a separate complaint. The use of criminal proceedings was therefore accompanied by political attempts to remove the campaigns from public spaces.
On 28 March, the Córdoba Provincial Prosecutor’s Office transferred the first complaint to Madrid because ACdP has its headquarters there. By 18 April, both complaints filed in Córdoba had reportedly been transferred to the Fiscalía Provincial de Madrid (Madrid Provincial Prosecutor’s Office).
On 29 October 2025, the Madrid Prosecutor’s Office dismissed the complaint concerning the campaign about women. The prosecutor concluded that the statements did not constitute a criminal offence and fell within the protection of freedom of expression. No subsequent public decision has been identified regarding the complaint concerning the Down syndrome campaign.
Source: Hispanidad, Europa Press, El Día de Córdoba
Image: ACdP