"Homophobia is an irrepressible aversion, repugnance, fear, hatred, prejudice that some people harbor against homosexuals, lesbians, bisexuals and transsexuals".
Politicize!
As with other types of prejudice and discrimination, homophobia It is present in our daily lives and can even go unnoticed in small ways. By normalizing and not combating this form of prejudice, it is conniving with violence: last year alone, 262 people were killed for being homosexual in Brazil (which corresponds to 82,91% of cases of homophobia), according to the Dossier of Deaths and Violence against LGBTI+ in Brazil. (Brazil Agency)
ADVERTISING
It also happens with artists and personalities
The actor Carmo Dalla Vecchia, famous for his TV soap operas, he made his sexual orientation public recently. He and author João Emanuel Carneiro are married and have a son. Vecchia often shares videos with her son on social media, talking about the fact that the child has two parents, showing love, affection and dialogue – a way found to combat prejudice and show that same-sex families are stable and safe for a child. And, on the same social networks, he receives homophobic attacks.
It wasn't the first time the actor had gone through the situation. In July this year, he filed a formal complaint about homophobic attacks he received.
Why does homophobia exist?
The Observatory of LGBTQI+ Deaths and Violence in Brazil states that this prejudice arises from socially imposed rigidity regarding who we should be and who we should love.
ADVERTISING
“This is a reflection of a society that supports structural LGBTphobia, defined as a set of discriminatory, institutional, historical, cultural practices by a society and that often privileges cis-heterosexuality to the detriment of other gender identities and sexual orientations.”
How to identify homophobic acts?
O Curto News spoke with the president of OAB SP Sexual and Gender Diversity Commission, Heloisa Helena Cidrin Gama Alves, which explained how homophobia affects the rights of homosexual people.
“Homophobia violates the right to non-discrimination, which is a fundamental right provided for in the federal constitution, in addition to violating the principle of human dignity”, he states Heloisa Helena Cidrin Gama Alves.
ADVERTISING
“Homophobia generates violence in various forms: through veiled, physical, verbal violence”, explains Heloisa.
- Veiled violence: “It is not made explicit, but it happens in a subtle way, for example, in the work environment: when a homosexual, LGBTQIA+ person does not have an inclusive work environment, having to hide their sexual orientation, or when they come out, they often suffer a prejudice through jokes, through work that is not consistent with their role or through the difficulty of getting a promotion.”
- Physical violence: “Violence occurs through physical aggression motivated by the homophobia of the aggressor, which may or may not lead to death.”
- Verbal violence: “It happens through swearing and jokes.”
Is homophobia a crime?
"Yes. Homophobia is a crime in Brazil due to a decision by the Supreme Court. On June 13, 2019, by majority vote, in a direct action of unconstitutionality by Imission (n.26) and injunction n.4733, the STF established that until a law emanating from the National Congress that criminalizes LGBTphobia comes into force, homophobic and transphobic conduct, as it translates expressions of racism, understood in its social dimension, conforms to the precepts defined in the Racism Law (Law 7.716/89) also constituting the hypothesis of intentional homicide, a circumstance that qualifies the penalty”, explained the specialist.
Why is it part of the racism law?
“The concept of racism understood in its social dimension goes beyond strictly biological or phenotypic aspects, as it results, in a manifestation of power, of not respecting differences and minoritized groups such as LGBTI+. It is as if these groups were degraded to the status of marginals of the legal system, exposed to perverse stigmatization and an unfair situation of exclusion from the general system of protection of rights”.
ADVERTISING
O Curto News There are three tips for you to combat homophobic acts:
- Call LGBTQIA+ people by name (if you have one, social name). Avoid nicknames that belittle someone and also don't call people by their sexual orientation.
- Do not do questionthings you wouldn't do to a heterosexual.
- Do not condone offenses and take a stand against this practice.
Curto Curatorship:
- Meaning of the Acronym LGBTQIA+ and LGBT Flags (Observatory of LGBTI+ Deaths and Violence in Brazil)
- Almost 320 LGBTI+ people died from violent causes in Brazil in 2021, says entity (CNN)
- Number of violent deaths of LGBTI+ people rose 33,3% in one year (Agency Brazil)
- Transvestites surpass gays in the number of violent deaths in the country (Congress in Focus)
- Eduardo Leite thanks anti-homophobia demonstrations after Onyx advertisement (Mail Braziliense)
Curto Explain: everything you need to know and are embarrassed to ask!😉
Click here to see more explanatory content ⤴️
