South America
Former Brazilian congressman David Miranda dies at 37
Glenn Greenwald announced husband’s death on Tuesday
![](https://www.washingtonblade.com/content/files/2023/05/David_Miranda_insert_via_twitter.jpg)
Former Brazilian Congressman David Miranda died in a Rio de Janeiro hospital on Tuesday.
Media reports indicate Miranda, 37, had been in the intensive care unit for nine months with a gastrointestinal infection. His husband, journalist Glenn Greenwald, announced Miranda’s death on his Twitter page.
“His death, early this morning, came after a 9-month battle in ICU,” tweeted Greenwald. “He died in full peace, surrounded by our children and family and friends.”
It is with the most profound sadness that I announce the passing away of my husband, @DavidMirandaRio. He would have turned 38 tomorrow.
His death, early this morning, came after a 9-month battle in ICU. He died in full peace, surrounded by our children and family and friends. pic.twitter.com/wtRvGyJyGl
— Glenn Greenwald (@ggreenwald) May 9, 2023
Miranda, who would have turned 38 on Wednesday, was born in Rio’s Jacarezinho favela.
Greenwald on his Twitter account noted Miranda’s neighbor adopted him after his mother died when he was 5.
“That gave David the chance to live his full potential in a society that often suffocates it,” said Greenwald. “He was key to the (Edward) Snowden story, became the first gay man elected to Rio’s City Council, then federal Congress at 32. He inspired so many with his biography, passion and force of life.”
That gave David the chance to live his full potential in a society that often suffocates it. He was key to the Snowden story, became the first gay man elected to Rio’s City Council, then federal Congress at 32. He inspired so many with his biography, passion, and force of life. pic.twitter.com/i84GWmJrbI
— Glenn Greenwald (@ggreenwald) May 9, 2023
Miranda and Greenwald met on a Rio beach in 2005. The two men in 2017 adopted two brothers.
Miranda in 2016 won a seat on the Rio Muncipal Council. His friend, bisexual Rio Municipal Councilwoman Marielle Franco and her driver, Anderson Gomes, were assassinated on March 14, 2018, in the city’s Lapa neighborhood.
Miranda in 2019 succeeded Jean Wyllys, who is openly gay, after death threats prompted him to resign from Congress and flee Brazil. Miranda last year announced he would not seek re-election.
“My condolences to Glenn Greenwald and relatives for the loss of David Miranda,” tweeted Brazilian President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva. “[He was] a young man with an extraordinary trajectory who left too soon.”
Michelle Seixas, the national political coordinator of Articulação Brasileira de Lésbicas (Brazilian Articulation of Lesbians), a group that advocates on behalf of lesbians in Brazil, told the Washington Blade that Miranda’s death is “still hard to believe.” Other Brazilian activists, advocacy groups and politicians also mourned the late-congressman.
“I just received the sad news of the death of colleague David Miranda, a former federal congressman for the PSOL (Socialism and Liberty Party) and LGBT activist,” said Congresswoman Erika Hilton, a transgender woman who represents São Paulo. “My love and solidarity with your family and friends. Rest in peace, David!”
Acabo de receber a triste notícia do falecimento do colega David Miranda, ex Deputado Federal pelo PSOL e ativista LGBT. Meu abraço e solidariedade à seus familiares e amigos. Descanse em paz, David!
— ERIKA HILTON (@ErikakHilton) May 9, 2023
Franco’s widow, Rio Municipal Councilwoman Mônica Benício, also paid tribute to Miranda.
“David Miranda — one of the greatest loves I’ve ever had in my life,” said Benício in a tweet that included a picture of her kissing Miranda. “We were so obsessed with each other that we made a promise to die together one day because we didn’t want to live without our friendship, but David couldn’t wait. He leaves us on the eve of his birthday.”
David Miranda – um dos maiores amores que eu já tive na vida. Éramos tão obcecados um pelo outro que fizemos uma promessa de morremos juntos um dia porque não queríamos viver sem a nossa amizade. Mas David não conseguiu esperar. Ele nos deixa às véspera de seu aniversário. ➕ pic.twitter.com/X6dGCpCaw1
— Monica Benicio (@monica_benicio) May 9, 2023
Gui Mohallem, co-founder and director of VoteLGBT, a group that seeks to increase the number of LGBTQ and intersex people in Brazilian politics, also mourned Miranda.
“It’s a great, great, great loss,” Mohallem told the Blade on Tuesday.
South America
Chilean lawmakers reject proposed nondiscrimination law reforms amid tense anti-LGBTQ debate
Statute named after gay man who was killed in 2012
![](https://www.washingtonblade.com/content/files/2024/06/20240604_Emilia_Schneider_insert_courtesy_Emilia_Schneider.jpg)
A political earthquake took place in Chile on Tuesday when the Chamber of Deputies rejected proposed reforms to the country’s nondiscrimination law.
The proposed reforms’ objective is “to strengthen the prevention of discrimination and to promote and guarantee in a better way the principle of equality.” Lawmakers in 2012 approved the law, also called the Zamudio Law, named in honor of Daniel Zamudio, a gay 24-year-old man who lost his life after a group of neo-Nazis attacked him in San Borja Park in Santiago, the country’s capital.
Lawmakers by a 69-63 vote margin rejected the proposed reform that President Gabriel Boric’s government introduced. Thirteen deputies abstained.
The Chilean Senate has already approved the proposal. A commission of lawmakers from both chambers of Congress will now consider it.
Most ruling party members supported the bill, while the opposition rejected it as a block.
Congressman Cristóbal Urruticoechea, who is close Republican Party ally, defended his vote against the bill.
“Of course we must respect the deviation of others, but it does not have to be an obligation to applaud them or to tell our children that there are more than two types of sexes, because that is not discrimination,” he said.
Emilia Schneider, the country’s first transgender congresswoman, said “unfortunately the majority of the House (of Deputies) has rejected the protection of victims of discrimination.”
“This is not understandable, it is unacceptable and we are here with a group of civil society organizations to call upon the majority of parliamentarians to reconsider so that we can fix this disaster in the mixed commission,” she said. “We have been waiting a long time for a reform to the Anti-Discrimination Law. We have been waiting a long time for an institutional framework that promotes equality and inclusion in our country because today lives continue to be lost due to discrimination and we cannot continue to tolerate that.”
“Unfortunately, today the Chamber of Deputies is once again turning its back on the citizenry,” added Schneider.
Rolando Jiménez, director of the Movement for Homosexual Integration and Liberation, the country’s main queer organization known by the acronym Movilh, in a statement said “today we went back to the past, to the 90s, to the darkest moments for LGBTIQ+ people and discriminated sectors.”
“Far-right congressmen went to the extreme of describing LGBTIQ+ people as deviants during the debate in the Chamber,” he said. “We are in the presence of the worst legislative scenario for nondiscrimination of which we have ever had record. It is, by all accounts, a civilizational setback.”
María José Cumplido, the executive director of Fundación Iguales, another Chilean advocacy group, told the Washington Blade that “lies were installed” during the debate.
“This is not a bad law,” she said. “It is a law that follows international standards that prevent discrimination and that improves people’s quality of life.”
“We have been talking about security and discrimination for years, it is a security problem that hundreds and thousands of people live with,” added Cumplido. “We want this project to continue advancing so that the State can prevent discrimination and that people can choose their life projects in freedom.”
‘We will continue the fight’
The proposed reform’s rejection represents a significant setback in the fight for nondiscrimination and equal rights in Chile.
The proposal sought to establish an anti-discrimination institutional framework, as well as to broaden the possibilities of compensation for victims of discrimination. It also sought to raise the maximum fines for discriminatory acts and to strengthen the State’s anti-discrimination policies.
“We will not lower our flags,” said Jiménez. “We will continue the fight in the Joint Commission.”
Movilh has urged LGBTQ Chileans and families to protest against the vote during the annual Santiago Pride march that will take place on June 29.
South America
La Pesada Subversiva battles anti-LGBTQ digital violence in Bolivia
Santa Cruz-based collective is trans, feminist, and sexually diverse
![](https://www.washingtonblade.com/content/files/2024/05/La_Pesada_Subversiva_in_Santa_Cruz_Bolivia_insert_1_courtesy_La_Pesada_Subversiva.jpg)
In Bolivia, the collective La Pesada Subversiva faced an onslaught of digital violence they could have never imagined after showcasing their LGBTQ artwork. Thanks to Hivos’ Digital Defenders Partnership, they received critical support and training to protect themselves, and now have tools to fight against online aggression.
La Pesada Subversiva (The Subversive Troublemakers), a trans, feminist, and sexually diverse collective in Bolivia, has emerged as a form of resistance to patriarchy and gender-based violence. Founded in 2018 in Santa Cruz, one of Bolivia’s most conservative regions, the collective uses various art forms — audiovisual, writing, street happenings, and social media content — to express their views in demonstrations, protests, and the virtual realm.
Cristian Egüez (he/him), one of the founders, explains, “In this region, far-right and ultra-religious narratives are prevalent, pushed by very conservative authorities. In such a tough context, collectives are needed with the courage to confront them and maintain a critical approach to the violence that occurs.”
Pride Month and ensuing violence
The Altillo Benni Museum, the largest in the city, commemorated Pride Month for the first time on June 1, 2022. They opened an LGBTQ art exhibition called “Revolución Orgullo” or “Pride Revolution” led by La Pesada Subversiva. The collective’s groundbreaking LGBTQ art exhibition faced vehement opposition.
“We adorned the museum facade with trans and LGBTIQ+ flags,” Egüez recounts, “but it lasted less than a day because a group of neighbors came to protest violently and aggressively.”
Despite this, the exhibition attracted over 400 visitors, demonstrating growing public support for their cause.
Confronting online harassment
To the collective’s surprise, the museum’s director defended the exhibition, stating that no artwork would be removed, and the exhibition would remain until the end of the month. But then an unimaginable wave of digital violence hit them. Egüez recalls the aftermath: “The event left us emotionally devastated. Throughout that year, every day, we had to endure threats and harassment online.”
Alejandra Menacho (she/her), another founder of La Pesada Subversiva, shares her experience, saying, “They threatened to rape me, to teach me how to be a woman. It overwhelmed us; it started to really hurt because we felt … everything we said or did was being surveilled.” The collective faced constant harassment on social media, with anti-rights groups monitoring their activities and scaring them with false threats.
Seeking protection from the Digital Defenders Partnership
As the onslaught escalated, the collective sought refuge and support. They applied for a grant from the DDP to get digital protection and security. With DDP’s assistance, they underwent comprehensive training in digital security measures, enabling them to protect their online presence effectively. The members learned to protect themselves and their accounts, not to publish certain things, and to be cautious about disclosing their whereabouts. DDP’s training gave them a comprehensive understanding of digital security tools and provided clear guidelines for dealing with future incidents and how to report them.
In addition to these digital security skills, they learned physical self-defense techniques, blending martial arts with a feminist approach.
“This has strengthened us immensely. Now we understand digital security holistically and are always safeguarding our networks,” Menacho emphasizes.
![](https://www.washingtonblade.com/content/files/2024/05/La_Pesada_Subversiva_in_Santa_Cruz_Bolivia_insert_2_courtesy_La_Pesada_Subversiva.jpg)
The ongoing struggle of online resilience
Despite the challenges, La Pesada Subversiva remains steadfast in their mission.
“Digital security must be integrated across the board; it’s not something you attend a workshop for and forget. It must be practiced continually,” Egüez asserts.
For Menacho, even though she has experienced a lot of frustration and anger, learning to combine these digital tools with psychology and art has helped her express themselves and achieve emotional balance.
“Because we are rebellious, we want to do these things. Also, because we don’t want these injustices to continue in Santa Cruz. That’s why we keep coming back and reinventing ourselves,” Menacho said.
La Pesada Subversiva’s journey exemplifies the resilience and determination of marginalized communities in the face of adversity. Through collective empowerment and solidarity, they navigate the complexities of digital violence, emerging stronger and more united in their pursuit of equality and justice.
The Digital Defenders Partnership (DDP), managed by Hivos, is an emergency grant mechanism for digital activists under threat launched by the Freedom Online Coalition in 2012. It provides a holistic response to digital threats and creates resilient and sustainable networks of support to human rights defenders.
South America
Argentine authorities charge 10 police officers with murdering transgender woman
Sofia Fernández brutally killed on April 11, 2023
![](https://www.washingtonblade.com/content/files/2024/05/Mabel_Valdez_insert_courtesy.jpg)
Argentine authorities have arrested 10 police officers and charged them with murdering a transgender woman in 2023.
In the historic development in the fight for LGBTQ justice in the country, the officers who were arrested on May 1 face murder and hate crime charges in connection with Sofia Fernández’s brutal death on April 11, 2023. The case has uncovered not only entrenched institutional violence, but also the ongoing struggle against impunity for hate crimes.
The initial investigation, which began last September, faced numerous obstacles, with only three points of expertise completed out of the 16 required for a formal indictment. Ignacio Fernandez, a lawyer who represents Sofia Fernández’s family, told the Washington Blade “the family’s lack of confidence in the initial prosecutor led to his departure, which coincided with my arrival to the investigation in September of last year, collaborating in an arduous but vital investigation.”
Ignacio Fernández described the long process to unravel the truth behind the brutal murder.
The legal and forensic teams faced numerous challenges that included coordination with gender-specialized prosecutors to the meticulous analysis of thousands of pieces of data on seized cell phones.
“The forensic report revealed the gruesome nature of the crime; Sofia was killed by asphyxiation with a piece of mattress and her own underwear, in addition to suffering beatings and physical torture,” Ignacio Fernández told the Blade. “Sofía was kept alone in a cell of the 5th Police Station of Pilar, under the custody of the police of the province of Buenos Aires, which triggered an intense scrutiny of the conduct of the police forces.”
The indictment, according to Ignacio Fernández, charges the three policemen with “triple homicide qualified by hatred of their sexual orientation, by the premeditated participation of three or more persons and by the abuse of their position as policemen; while the remaining seven policemen are implicated for the double qualified cover-up for being a very serious crime and for the abuse of their position as policemen in competition with the falsification of public documents.”
“The application of a gender perspective in the judicial process has been crucial, underlining the importance of recognizing and addressing violence directed towards transgender people,” he added.
![](https://www.washingtonblade.com/content/files/2024/05/Ignacio_Fernandez_insert_courtesy_Ignacio_Fernandez.jpg)
The road to justice, however, has been far from smooth.
Despite the arrests, defense lawyers have requested the dismissal of certain charges, arguing the lack of hearings with the victim and rulings that could be questionable in their gender-specific perspective.
Sofia Fernández’s family, fearful for her safety, hopes the defendants will remain in pre-trial detention during the judicial process. They also yearn for a speedy and fair trial, aware that prolonged time may undermine the search for truth and justice.
Ignacio Fernández indicated “the inaction of the Ministry of Women of the province of Buenos Aires” is serious because “on the other hand, the defense lawyers of all the police officers charged are from the Police Legal Department of the Ministry of Security of the province of Buenos Aires and have proposed as expert witnesses experts belonging to the same ministry, with the conflicts of interest that all this entails.”
Although the judicial investigation could take between two and four months, with possible delays due to legal appeals, it is estimated the trial could be delayed at least another year. The fight for justice, in the meantime, continues with the hope that Sofia Fernández’s case will set a precedent in the fight against transphobic violence and impunity in Argentina.
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