In 2021, there were at least 316 violent deaths of lesbian, gay, bisexual, transvestite, transgender and intersex people (LGBTI+) in Brazil in 2021. This number represents an increase of 33.3% over the previous year, when there were 237 deaths. The data are contained in the Dossier of Deaths and Violence against LGBTI+ in Brazil.
Among the crimes that occurred last year, 262 were homicides (which corresponds to 82.91% of the cases), 26 suicides (8.23%), 23 murders (7.28%) and 5 deaths from other causes (1, 58%).
THE dossierproduced through the Observatory of Deaths and Violence against LGBTI+, is the result of a partnership between LGBTI+ Art and Politics, the National Association of Transvestites and Transsexuals (Antra) and the Brazilian Association of Lesbians, Gays, Bisexuals, Transvestites, Transsexuals and Intersex (ABGLT).
Conducted through a database shared between these three institutions, the work contains the records of cases found in newspaper news, electronic portals and social networks. The violence occurred in different environments, such as domestic, public roads, prison and workplace.
“Although this number already represents the great loss of people, just because of their gender identity and/or sexual orientation, we have evidence to assume that this data is still underreported in Brazil”, disclosed the entities, which pointed to the absence of data. government agencies as a challenge for the preparation of the dossier.
As the survey depends on the recognition of the victims’ gender identity and sexual orientation by the vehicles that report the deaths, many cases of violence committed against LGBTI+ people end up not being counted.
Most violated profiles
The two groups that suffered the most violence, comprising 90.5% of the cases, were gay men (45.89%), with a total of 145 deaths; and transvestites and trans women (44.62%), with 141 deaths. Lesbian women represent 3.80% of deaths (12 cases); trans men and transmale people account for 2.53% of cases (eight deaths).
Bisexual people (0.95%) and people identified as other segments (0.95%) had 3 deaths each group. There were four people whose sexual orientation or gender identity was not identified, representing 1.27% of the total, with 4 cases.
The age of victims ranged from 13 to 67 years in 2021, with most deaths occurring among young people between 20 and 29 years old (96 cases, representing 30.38% of the total). The other age groups corresponded to the following proportions: 22 people aged between 10 and 19 years old
(6.96%); 68 people between 30 and 39 years old (21.52%); 36 people between 40 and 49 years old (11.39%); 21 people between 50 and 59 years old (6.65%); and 13 people between 60 and 69 years old (4.11%). In 60 cases (18.99%), it was not possible to identify the age.
Eleven of the victims were teenagers between the ages of 13 and 17. “We draw attention to the age of the youngest person, who was a 13-year-old trans teenager, having become the youngest victim of transfemicide in Brazil,” the dossier said.
The assessment of the entities is that the general scenario of violence against this population has changed little in relation to effective measures to combat LGBTIphobia by the State. “Even in a scenario where we have achieved considerable achievements with the Judiciary, we perceive the recurring inertia of the Legislative and Executive in omitting themselves in the face of LGBTIphobia, which continues to accumulate victims and remains rooted in the state and throughout society.”
cause of death
According to the dossier, most deaths occurred by stabbing, with 91 cases (28.8% of the total), in second place came firearm deaths, with 83 cases (26.27), followed by beatings, with 20 cases (6.33%), and asphyxia, with 10 cases (3.16%). In total, 26 different causes of death for LGBTI+ were identified in the country.
Most deaths occurred at night, with 152 cases, representing 48.10% of the total. In 11.08%, the deaths occurred during the day and, in 129 cases (40.82%), the period was not identified. “This data indicates the relevance of professional practices – such as prostitution -, cultural and leisure practices of the LGBTI+ population carried out at night, which demands greater attention from the Public Power in guaranteeing the safety of this vulnerable group”, highlighted the dossier.
The Northeast and Southeast regions had 116 and 103 violent deaths, respectively. The other regions had around 30 deaths each: 36 in the Midwest, 32 in the North and 28 in the South. The states with the highest number of deaths were São Paulo (42), Bahia (30), Minas Gerais (27) and Rio de Janeiro (26), the four most populous states in Brazil.
Suicide
The survey revealed that the highest number of suicide cases occurred among transvestites and trans women, with 38.46% of cases (10 people), and gay men, with 30.77% of the total (8). Then there are trans men and people from other segments, with two cases each.
According to the entities that prepared the dossier, the result “shows possible damage caused by structural LGBTIphobia, which significantly impacts people’s mental health, and can lead to intense suffering or even the taking of their own lives by people in situations of vulnerability”.
