In the street rehearsals before the main event, members of the Paraíso do Tuiuti samba school celebrate the life of Xica Manicongo. Image: Lucas Cézar/apalavrimagem, used with permission.

In São Cristóvão, a neighbourhood in northern Rio de Janeiro, Monday nights turned into a celebration of transgender people. From the beginning of the 2025 carnival rehearsals, a drum section of about 300 people led the group in singing the samba-enredo [samba style for carnival] loud and clear:

Eu, travesti
Estou no cruzo da esquina
Pra enfrentar a chacina
Que assim se faça

Me, travesti
I'm at the corner's crossing
To face the slaughter
So be it

In these times where we see laws attacking gender identity, threats, and cases of violence against LGBTQ+ people, the Paraíso do Tuiuti samba school decided to respond by highlighting a historical case: the life of the first non-Indigenous travesti recognized in Brazil was the theme of its annual parade, entitled “Who's afraid of Xica Manicongo?”

Identifying as travesti — a Latin American, female gender identity — is a political statement and a way of re-signifying the term used pejoratively for so long.

Master of ceremonies and flag bearer during rehearsal in São Cristóvão. Image: Lucas Cézar – apalavrimagem, used with permission.

For Bruna Benevides, president of the National Association of Travestis and Transsexuals (ANTRA), this theme choice also took a stand against political hostility, which has been mirrored elsewhere in the Americas, such as in the United States under Donald Trump's presidency.

“While Trump, in his inaugural speech, named trans people as targets for harassment, Brazil's carnival, on the other hand, is saying that here trans people are important,” she said, in conversation with Global Voices.

In line with his political agenda, Trump has closed diversity programs and announced a series of measures that directly affect LGBTQ+ rights. Meanwhile, in Brazil, according to a survey by the newspaper Folha de São Paulo, at least 77 anti-trans laws are in place in 18 states.

Who was Xica Manicongo?

Thought of as the country's first travesti, Xica Manicongo's story has been sidelined and made invisible over the centuries. Historical records show that in the 16th century she was taken from Congo, in Africa, to be enslaved in Salvador, Brazil's first capital, in Bahia state.

There, she worked as a shoemaker, and was accused of sodomy for refusing to wear clothes considered masculine and for not conforming to behaviors expected of a ”man.” She found refuge with the Tupinambá Indigenous people, with whom she exchanged cultural and spiritual knowledge. She was also a priestess of the Afro-Brazilian religion Quimbanda.

During parade rehearsal, the community held a banner reading ‘Trans Lives Matter! Citizenship, dignity, and rights. Image: Beatriz Gimenes/Used with permission.

Now, Xica Manicongo's identity and legacy are highlighted in this parade's story, developed by Jack Vasconcelos. Interviewed by Global Voices, he said:

Eu acredito que o nosso enredo é um manifesto. É um grito de resistência que começa no Brasil e vai pro mundo todo. Nosso desfile é visto por mais de uma centena de países e eu acho que serve como um recado para a comunidade LGBTQIAPN+ mundial para não desanimar.

I believe our theme choice is a manifesto. It is a cry of resistance that begins in Brazil and goes all over the world. Our parade is seen in over a hundred countries and I think it serves as a message to the global LGBTQIAPN+ community to not despair.

For Vasconcelos, giving prominence to the story of a travesti in the country's largest popular festival is a positive response. However, the political rights gained so far cannot be taken for granted and demand vigilance.

Tuiuti's leading group stages a burning of travesti, making reference both to the Holy Inquisition of the 16th century and the violence and murders of today. Image: Beatriz Gimenes, used with permission.

Observatória, an organization that monitors LGBTQ+ legislation, revealed that in 2024 alone, at least 39 anti-LGBTQ+ proposals were put forward by parliamentarians in Brazil in state-level legislative assemblies and the Lower Chamber of the National Congress. Rhetoric and laws opposing neutral language and other rights for LGBTQ+ people have increasingly come from conservative politicians.

Furthermore, the National Association of Travestis and Transsexuals reported that 122 trans people were murdered last year. In Brazil, even recording the statistics on trans people who have died faces difficulties. There are no official records, while different civil society data initiatives continue to try to document the reality.

Fighting fear

Bruna Benevides and Jack Vasconcelos argue that fear of being manipulated is one of the reasons behind the persecution of the trans community.

Bruna explained that this feeling is used deliberately by the far right to dehumanize the group. For her, conservatism, “through the manipulation of fear, panic, and the creation of this common enemy, [looks to] implement [its] authoritarian, unscientific, and undemocratic plans.”:

É preciso saber de onde vem esse medo, como se construiu esse imaginário em torno das pessoas trans, por que as pessoas têm medo das travestis e das mulheres trans… Qual é a visão que as pessoas têm que foi incluída e construída a respeito da nossa comunidade? Só a partir das possibilidades de respostas a estas perguntas a gente vai pensar em um processo de humanização da comunidade trans/travesti.

We need to understand where this fear comes from, how this collective perception but was built around trans people, why people are afraid of travestis and trans women … What is the understanding that people have created of our community? It is only with the possible answers to these questions that we will be able move towards humanizing the trans/travesti community.

Jack argues that we must be constantly vigilant to combat transphobia. “Historically, these attacks are recurrent, we must always be prepared [ … ], defend conquered territory, not let it slip away/lose it, and build on it,” he said.

The Tuiuti group on the main avenue of the São Cristóvão neighbourhood during street rehearsals. Image: Lucas Cézar – apalavrimagem, used with permission.

Government action

To resist the actions of conservative governments, such as the current Trump administration, Bruna pointed to the need for states, countries, and the targeted groups themselves to understand the importance of defending transgender people's rights. ”We are in a cultural war of narratives that is constantly trying to roll back a pro-human rights, progressive agenda,” she said.

In January, the Ministry of Human Rights and Citizenship of Brazil, in partnership with the National Secretariat for the Defense of LGBTQ+ People, ANTRA, and other civil society organizations, launched the National Agenda to Tackle Violence Against LGBTQIA+ people, a set of 14 actions aimed at the general population. On a practical level, there are courses planned in the areas of public security and combating homophobia.

A pact of protocols to be signed throughout the country to fight against LGBTphobia in the judiciary and in actions taken with the Ministry of Health was unveiled at the launch event.

The parade

Scheduled to take place on the last day of carnival in Brazil, Paraíso do Tuiuti's parade included transgender artists, activists, and parliamentarians.

Trans federal deputies Erika Hilton (PSOL) and Duda Salabert (PDT) participated in one of the floats, along with other guests representing the prominence and power of the community in Brazilian politics.

For Jack, the point of choosing this theme is to demonstrate to this part of the LGBTQ+ population that their story is “beautiful and significant.”

ANTRA participated in the process of managing, researching for, and developing this year's parade and, in Bruna's view, Tuiuti's topic is engaged, thoughtful, and popular. It constructs a political imaginary that makes us believe change is possible in the Americas and around the world:

“Society as a whole will be able to learn that it is not normal and not reasonable to be afraid of trans people. That it should not even be acceptable: that trans people, then, are worthy of respect, of guaranteed freedom,” she said.