In São Paulo, protest calls for end of violence against street and LGBT people

Activists protested this Monday (Jan. 16) for the end of violence against the street population and LGBT people in Dom Pedro II subway station, in the central region of São Paulo, where, on December 25, street vendor Luiz Carlos Ruas was violently beaten to death when trying to defend two transgender women from an attack.

The group noted that, since that day, two other LGBT-related crimes were reported. A 17-year-old boy died after being stabbed—his mother and stepfather are the main suspects of the crime. Over the weekend, a boy was beaten at Rua Augusta, a street in the central region of São Paulo, after asking for help during a robbery. A man who was passing by not only refused to help, but also attacked the victim and justified his acts based on homophobic statements.

Priest Júlio Lancelotti, coordinator of the pastoral works with the street population, pointed out that this type of crime has grown, due to the increasing number of LGBT people living in the street. Lancelotti showed pictures of the injuries inflicted to a young man who attended the São Miguel church and had been attacked when trying to defend a homosexual friend. However, according to the priest, the victim had chosen not to file a police complaint. "It is a very large number of people. Not all cases are reported, but there are many people being beaten," he pointed out.

“It is something we witness every day. We, gay people, are dying, hunted like witches," protested LGBT activist Agripino Magalhães, adding that it is essential that victims of hate crimes require police officers to write this specification at the record. “All chiefs of police working at the São Paulo state are required to specify the homophobia term when reporting a case," he pointed out.

Translated by Amarílis Anchieta