After years of tireless campaigning, Mexico City has finally passed a law making transfemicide a crime with up to 70 years in prison. This is huge, and a game-changer in one of Latin America’s most dangerous countries for trans folks.
Trans sex worker Paola Buenrostro was tragically killed by a client in Mexico City in 2016. Her friend Kenya Cuevas grabbed the guy and recorded the chaotic scene as the cops arrived. Despite all that, a judge decided that video evidence wasn’t enough and let the guy go after 48 hours. He’s been MIA ever since.
That nightmare night in 2016 turned Cuevas into a fierce activist.
“For the first time, we feel the law is on our side,” Cuevas said, reports The Guardian. “It’s some peace and satisfaction after years of hard work.”
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Passed Quickly Under Morena Party
The law passed almost unanimously, 45-to-1, and was heavily promoted by the ruling Morena Party. The left wing Morena Party is headed by President Claudia Sheinbaum, the country’s first female president. President Sheinbaum, who was just sworn in this June, ran on a platform of combating gender-based violence and improving the rights of LGBTQ+ citizens.
With this ruling, Mexico City is now the second state in Mexico to criminalize transfemicide, following Nayarit’s lead with its 60-year sentences. The law also allows friends, not just family, to get involved in the bureaucratic aftermath, which is crucial in a country where many trans people are disowned by their families. With over 95% of homicides going unpunished, and transfemicide rates likely even higher, this is a vital step forward.
Ernestina Godoy, Mexico City’s attorney general, has since apologized for the initial botched investigation into Buenrostro’s murder, marking it as the first officially recognized and investigated transfemicide.
This new law also mandates regular reports on crimes against the LGBTQ+ community. Particularly, it pushes for more transparency and better tracking of these crimes.
Sources: PinkNews, The Guardian, Claudia Sheinbaum FB
