Association Notes 175 Transsexuals Killed in Brazil in 2020, Denounces Underreporting

RIO DE JANEIRO, BRAZIL – Brazil registered 175 murders of transsexuals in 2020, according to the National Association of Transvestites and Transsexuals of Brazil’s (ANTRA) annual report, which would translate into one death every two days.

All victims were trans/transvestite women and this was the record for the gender since the organization began releasing its report in 2018, always on January 29th, National Transgender Day of Visibility.

The majority of victims were black, poor and worked as prostitutes on the streets.

Brazil holds the position as the country that most kills transsexuals in the world, behind Mexico and the United States, according to the NGO Transgender Europe (TGEU), which monitors 71 countries. ANTRA’s report uses this European organization’s methodology.

Cases are calculated based on reports and accounts from LGBTQIA+ organizations. The association denounces that there are no official data and therefore is of the opinion that the murder figures may be even higher.

ANTRA also states that there is no willingness on the part of the government to conduct the survey, which leads to the underreporting of such crimes. “Not wanting to survey these data is an aspect of institutional LGBTIphobia,” reads the report.

Underreporting also occurs because, according to the organization, there is a lack of data fields to record sexual orientation and/or gender identity in attendance forms in the areas of safety and health, or their correct completion.

Moreover, trans people do not feel comfortable denouncing the violence they witness, and when they do, they are not provided adequate assistance, says the report.

Other findings mentioned in the report are below:

No male trans murders were reported in 2020.
In addition to victims aged 15-29 (56%), another 28.4% were aged 30-39; 7.3% were aged 40-49; and 8.3% were aged 50-59. No cases were found of people over 60 years of age. The age of 66 victims could not be determined.
At least eight victims were homeless.
In 47% of crimes, blows and/or gunshots mainly targeted specific body areas such as face/head, breasts and genitalia.
In 24% of victims the means were beatings, stoning, asphyxiation and/or strangulation – deaths caused by these types of violence have increased.
In 8% other means were used such as beatings, beheading and fire.
In 16% of murders, more than one method of violence was used. In 24 cases, the means used to commit the crime were not reported.
In almost half of crimes there was no information regarding the suspect.
Of the 38 suspects identified, age ranged between 16 and 60; 46.5% were men, 4.5% women (cis and transgender).

São Paulo and Ceará lead

In 2020, there was an increase in cases in 11 states, compared to 2019, according to ANTRA. Most crimes were reported in the Northeast and Southeast regions.

São Paulo continues to lead in transgender murders, with 29 cases in 2020, a 38% increase over 2019. Ceará also remained in second position, with 22 deaths, double the preceding year.

Murders were reported in three locations where there were no records in 2019: Acre, Santa Catarina and the Federal District. The only state with no records in the year was Amapá, which also had no records the year before.

ANTRA also reported 77 attempted murders against the trans population last year.

The association is of the opinion that the pandemic contributed to the rise in violence in two ways. First, because transsexuals living off prostitution (90%, according to ANTRA) had to continue working on the streets.

“Our research estimates that about 70% of the transvestite and transgender women population had no access to the government’s emergency policies, due to the historically precarious nature of their livelihoods, and had a significant loss of income,” states the report.

And those who went into social isolation found themselves exposed to domestic violence, “much because these people were forced to quarantine with their tormentors and some family members who chose to be intolerant,” adds ANTRA.

The report is coordinated by Bruna Benevides, ANTRA’s secretary of political articulation, and Sayonara Nogueira, vice-president of the Brazilian Trans Institute of Education (IBTE). Both are trans women.

According to them, the lack of official data confirms that the states “are not interested in addressing the LGBTIphobia issue, be it institutional or otherwise.” This had been expected to change after the criminalization of homophobia and transphobia as hate crimes equal to racism was decreed by the Federal Supreme Court (STF) in 2019.

Source: G1