RIO DE JANEIRO, BRAZIL – A total of 26 popular movements, represented at the Meeting of the National LGBTIQ+ Popular Council, launched this Monday the program Brazil of All Colors in defense of the rights of this community and against all oppressions.
On the eve of the World Day to Combat Homophobia, Transphobia, and Biphobia, those attending the meeting examined the situation of rights of LGBTIQ+ populations and how to strengthen the guarantees for their enjoyment.
It is relevant because Brazil is the country where the largest number of LGBTIQ+ people die globally.
According to the Observatory of Deaths against LGBTIQ+, in 2021, 316 people lost their lives (285 murders, 26 suicides, and five with other causes). That same year 140 transgender people were murdered in the country.
The delegates addressed labor, environment, security, economy, and health in a more comprehensive perspective. They enunciated more than 70 guidelines for constructing public policies that promote respect for their rights.
“We are not just the gender and sexuality field. We are human beings who demand education, health, and so many other agendas comprehensively,” said Symmy Larrat, president of the Brazilian Association of Gays, Lesbians, Transvestites, and Transsexuals (ABGIT).
She valued that the discussions of the National LGBTIQ+ People’s Council are the beginning of a collective debate that will help orient the grassroots and also those “comrades who will assume executive, legislative, judicial and so many other tasks that are important for the construction of democracy.”
According to a report by the organization #VoteLGBT on the political participation of LGBTIQ+ candidacies in Brazil, they represent only 2% of the candidacies presented in cities with up to 500,000 inhabitants and reach 6% in smaller municipalities.
The National LGBTIQ+ Popular Council has been in session since May 15 in São Paulo City with the attendance of hundreds of people who agreed to strengthen the fight against discrimination.