Mexico has become one of the world's most dangerous countries for transgender people, with high homicide rates coupled with few convictions. An AP Exclusive.
In this Aug. 28, 2019 photo, trans rights activist Kenya Cuevas talks with Italia, a 24-year-old transgender sex worker from the state of Oaxaca, on a street corner in Mexico City. Cuevas' origin story as an activist who demands protections for trans women dates back to Sept. 29, 2016. That was the night her friend and fellow trans sex worker got into a client's Nissan compact car and was shot multiple times.
Like most crime in Mexico, nearly all such slayings go unsolved and unpunished — less than 3% of the killings of LGBTQ members have resulted in convictions since 2013. So transgender community leaders and activists are largely on their own in pursuing long-denied justice. Death threats have followed, and Cuevas now has security cameras installed at her home and is accompanied by two bodyguards provided by a governmental program that tries to protect activists and journalists.
Activists do point to some victories in recent years. A major one came in 2014 when Mexico City became the first place in the country to let transgender people change their gender and names on their birth certificates, a law that has since been adopted by six of Mexico’s 31 states. A common thread of vulnerability runs through the lives of transgender women, who are often shunned by their own families and forced into the streets. Cuevas and Sánchez both ran away from home at a young age to begin their transitions.
Last year, 53 transgender women were killed in Mexico. They include a woman found in a trash bin with her face pummeled beyond recognition by a rock. One was tortured to death by captors while her family heard her last moments over the phone. Another was found naked and strangled in her bedroom. No suspects have been publicly identified in those cases.
“It’s very important to us that we make it so local prosecutors take these cases seriously,” Haas said.
United States Latest News, United States Headlines
Similar News:You can also read news stories similar to this one that we have collected from other news sources.
The Fabric-Embellished Braid at Jonathan Cohen Is a Love Letter to Mexico—and SustainabilityLow on effort with maximal impact, the vibrant hairstyle at the designer's New York Fashion Week show recalled Frida Kahlo's own ribbon-accented braids.
Read more »
Death of an activist: unsolved murder exposes fraught outlook in MexicoDeath of an activist: unsolved murder exposes fraught outlook in Mexico via RebekahFWard
Read more »
U.S. reports border detentions down in August as Mexico cooperatesAbout 64,000 people were detained or turned back at the southwest border in Augu...
Read more »
Border chief: Mexico must step up immigration enforcementTrump’s border chief argues that Mexico hasn’t done enough to restrict the flow of migrants to the United States
Read more »
U.S. tech firms tell Congress: Pass U.S.-Mexico-Canada trade pact nowEleven trade groups on Monday urged U.S. lawmakers to pass the U.S.-Mexico-Canad...
Read more »
Mexico won't be safe third country for asylum seekers: EbrardMexican Foreign Minister Marcelo Ebrard on Monday reiterated that Mexico would n...
Read more »