Indianarae Siqueira

Indianarae Siqueira
Born (1971-05-18) 18 May 1971
Paranaguá, Paraná, Brazil
OccupationActivist

Indianarae Alves Siqueira (Paranaguá, 18 May 1971)[1] is a Brazilian activist, president of the Transrevolução group,[2] founder and coordinator of CasaNem — a shelter for LGBTQ people in situations of social vulnerability,[3] and PreparaNem, a community-based preparatory course for the ENEM exam for transgender people.[4] They[a] are the creator of the term "transvestigênere" (lit. 'Transvestigender').[8] Two documentaries were made in their honor: Indianara, by Aude Chevalier-Beaumel and Marcelo Barbosa, and Your Mother's Comfort, by Adam Golub.[9][10]

Biography

An Indigenous person of Mbyá Guaraní ancestry,[11] Siqueira began taking hormones at age 12. At 18, they left home and began wearing women's clothing, lived on the streets of São Paulo, and started prostituting themselves in Santos.[8] With the arrival of the AIDS epidemic, they became an activist after seeing many of their companions die. As a consequence, they founded the travesti group Filadélfia in Santos – the group was the first in Brazil to demand that the social name be mandatory in the medical records of travesti and transsexual people.[8] Indianarae was sold into prostitution by an international trafficking network, from which they managed to escape by paying the price they were sold for. They lived in Switzerland, where they rented apartments so that prostitutes could become independent, with the aim of dismantling pimping networks. In France, they denounced prostitution trafficking networks and were imprisoned for two and a half years. While in prison, they campaigned for travesti people to be referred to using female pronouns and for women's clothing to be provided.[8] Since 2009, Siqueira has lived in Rio de Janeiro and continue their political activism in defense of sex workers and LGBTQ+ people.[8]

In 2022, Siqueira managed to amend their documents to include non-binary gender, becoming one of the first people to achieve this in Paraná, their home state.[8][5]

Activism and political life

Indianarae Siqueira started CasaNem in Rio de Janeiro in 2015, in the Lapa neighborhood. Since September 2020, the shelter for LGBTQ people in situations of social vulnerability has been located in a property provided by the Rio de Janeiro state government in the Flamengo neighborhood, in the southern part of the city. Since November 2020, there has also been a CasaNem in Nova Iguaçu, in the Baixada Fluminense region. In total, the two houses together shelter approximately 50 people.[3][12]

Siqueira ran for city councilor in the Rio de Janeiro Municipal Elections for the Socialism and Liberty Party in 2016 and for the Workers' Party in 2020 and 2024, being elected as an alternate councilor in the first two candidacies.[13][14]

In 2019, the National Executive of the Socialism and Liberty Party expelled Indianarae Siqueira from the party.[15] The measure was approved by the PSOL National Directorate based on an opinion from the party's National Ethics Committee, which considered that the consolidation of CasaNem took place in the space where Casa Nuvem, a space for art and social activism, existed, and that it occurred through the violent expulsion of the founders from the site and threats against them, using methods contrary to the ethical principles defended by PSOL.[16] The expulsion caused an uproar from the Associação Nacional de Travestis e Transexuais[16] and motivated Duda Salabert's disaffiliation from the party.[17]

Indianarae is vegan[6] and anti-capitalist.[18]

References

  1. ↑ "Indianarae Siqueira". Diário do Rio de Janeiro (in Brazilian Portuguese). Archived from the original on 9 April 2023. Retrieved 2 March 2026.
  2. ↑ Balloussier, Anna Virginia (3 April 2021). "Países começam a autorizar emissão de passaporte para pessoa não binária" [Countries are beginning to authorize the issuance of passports to non-binary individuals]. Folha de S.Paulo (in Brazilian Portuguese). Archived from the original on 3 April 2021. Retrieved 2 March 2026.
  3. 1 2 Welle, Deutsche. "Covid-19 aumenta pressão sobre população LGBTI+ desabrigada" [Covid-19 increases pressure on homeless LGBTI+ population]. DW.COM (in Portuguese). Archived from the original on 29 January 2021. Retrieved 2 March 2026.
  4. ↑ ""Nós temos um mundo que não é preparado para determinados corpos"" ["We have a world that is not prepared for certain body types."]. Instituto Ethos (in Brazilian Portuguese). 19 July 2017. Archived from the original on 23 July 2017. Retrieved 2 March 2026.
  5. 1 2 "Nem masculino nem feminino: ativista muda documento para gênero não-binário" [Neither male nor female: activist changes document to reflect non-binary gender]. UOL (in Brazilian Portuguese). 26 February 2022. Retrieved 2 March 2026.
  6. 1 2 "Ícone nacional da luta contra LGBTIfobia, Indianarae disputa vaga no Congresso Nacional" [A national icon in the fight against LGBTphobia, Indianarae is running for a seat in the National Congress]. Mídia NINJA (in Brazilian Portuguese). 27 September 2022. Retrieved 2 March 2026.
  7. ↑ "Indianarae Siqueira". Instagram (in Brazilian Portuguese). Retrieved 21 April 2026.
  8. 1 2 3 4 5 6 Altmayer, Carlos Guilherme Mace; Portinari, Denise Berruezo (18 May 2017). "As ações estético-políticas de enfrentamento direto de Indianara Siqueira, pessoa normal de peito e pau" [The aesthetic-political actions of direct confrontation by Indianara Siqueira, a normal person with a chest and a penis]. Revista Periódicus (in Brazilian Portuguese). 1 (7). Federal University of Bahia: 300–312. doi:10.9771/peri.v1i7.22280. ISSN 2358-0844. Archived from the original on 28 July 2022.
  9. ↑ "Indianara Siqueira: história da ativista transexual vai para Festival de Cannes" [Indianara Siqueira: Transgender activist's story goes to Cannes Film Festival]. Futura (in Brazilian Portuguese). 13 May 2019. Archived from the original on 25 October 2020. Retrieved 2 March 2026.
  10. ↑ "'Your Mother's Comfort': Sheffield Doc/Fest Review". Screen International. Archived from the original on 26 January 2021. Retrieved 2 March 2026.
  11. ↑ "Indianarae Siqueira - Uma Vida em DesTransição" [Indianarae Siqueira - A Life in DeTransition]. www.sescsp.org.br (in Brazilian Portuguese). Archived from the original on 10 November 2024. Retrieved 2 March 2026.
  12. ↑ "No Rio, Casa Nem é refúgio para LGBTs excluídos das famílias nas festas de fim de ano" [In Rio, Casa Nem is a refuge for LGBT people excluded from their families during the end-of-year holidays]. Época (in Brazilian Portuguese). 26 December 2019. Archived from the original on 1 January 2020. Retrieved 2 March 2026.
  13. ↑ "Indianara Siqueira 50169 PSOL (Vereador) Rio de Janeiro - Guia Eleições 2016" [Indianara Siqueira 50169 PSOL (City Councilor) Rio de Janeiro - 2016 Election Guide]. Guia dos Candidatos (in Brazilian Portuguese). Gazeta do Povo. Archived from the original on 24 November 2020. Retrieved 2 March 2026.
  14. ↑ "Candidatos de Rio de Janeiro | Eleições 2020" [Candidates from Rio de Janeiro | Elections 2020]. Estadão (in Brazilian Portuguese). Archived from the original on 9 April 2023. Retrieved 2 March 2026.
  15. ↑ "Sobre o desligamento da filiada Indianara Siqueira" [Regarding the dismissal of affiliate Indianara Siqueira]. PSOL 50 (in Brazilian Portuguese). 6 April 2019. Retrieved 2 March 2026.
  16. 1 2 Simpson, Keila (8 April 2019). "Nota da ANTRA em Apoio a Indianare Siqueira" [ANTRA's statement in support of Indianare Siqueira]. Archived from the original on 27 September 2025. Retrieved 2 March 2026.
  17. ↑ Vespa, Talyta; Maluf, Vladimir (23 April 2019). "Trans acusa PSOL de preconceito: "Saí e Ciro me estendeu o tapete vermelho"" [Trans woman accuses PSOL of prejudice: "I left and Ciro rolled out the red carpet for me"]. UOL (in Brazilian Portuguese). Retrieved 2 March 2026.
  18. ↑ Legramante, Tatiana (21 August 2020). ""Vegana, anticapitalista e puta": conheça a ativista trans Indianarae Siqueira" ["Vegan, anti-capitalist, and a bitch": meet trans activist Indianarae Siqueira]. Revista Fórum (in Brazilian Portuguese). Retrieved 2 March 2026.
  1. ↑ Despite being referred to using feminine pronouns by most sources, Indianarae uses the Portuguese neuter pronouns "elu/delu",[5][6][7] equivalent to the English "they/their".
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