A Brazilian state lawmaker took the floor of the São Paulo Legislative Assembly last week and delivered a speech that ignited a firestorm across the country and beyond.
Fabiana Bolsonaro, a member of the São Paulo Legislative Assembly, staged a demonstration on Wednesday in opposition to a transgender politician being selected to lead a women’s rights body.
GB News reported that the protest came after Erika Hilton, who made history as the first openly transgender woman elected to Brazil’s National Congress, was appointed chair of the Commission for the Defence of Women’s Rights.
During her address from the lectern, Bolsonaro applied makeup to her face while repeatedly asking fellow legislators whether she had “become black.”
“As a white person, having lived through everything I’ve experienced as a white person, now, at 32, I’ve decided to put on makeup, to dress up as a black person, cover myself up, and let only the outside show,” Bolsonaro said during the address.
She then posed a direct question to those assembled: “Have I become black?”
Bolsonaro pressed further from the podium. “As I paint myself black, I feel firsthand the pain that a black person has felt because of racism, because of not being able to get a job … This is exactly what I want to show.”
“There’s no point in me putting on makeup. I don’t know the pain you’ve gone through. There’s no point in me pretending … But right now I’m not black,” she said, raising her painted arms.
She continued building her argument. “I’m painted black on the outside. Come on, I identify as black. So why can’t I, then, chair the commission on racism, the anti-racism commission? Why can’t I advocate for this? Why can’t I address this issue?”
Bolsonaro answered her own rhetorical question without hesitation: “Do you know why I can’t address this issue? Because I’m not black.”
Bolsonaro then began removing the makeup before turning her argument toward the question of gender identity.
“As a woman, I am a woman. It’s no use dressing up as a woman. And I’m not here to offend transgender people … I’m saying, as a woman, I want to be seen as a woman. The woman of the year cannot be transgender … So, what I’m saying here is that transgender people must be respected … But I also don’t want any trans person to take my place,” she stated.
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Bolsonaro contended that trans women do not undergo childbirth, breastfeeding, or endometriosis — experiences she considers fundamental to womanhood.
Monica Seixas, one of Bolsonaro’s colleagues, interrupted the speech and accused her colleague of transphobia, racism, and blackface, requesting the suspension of the session and the broadcast, according to Brazilian newspaper Folha de S.Paulo.
Session chair Fábio Faria de Sá allowed Bolsonaro to finish speaking and said the case would be referred to the Assembly’s leadership.
In a petition signed by 18 lawmakers, Seixas argued that the act violates constitutional principles and reinforces stigmas against trans people.
She also filed a police report for racial discrimination, reported Revolver News.
Other PSOL lawmakers filed a criminal complaint with federal prosecutors and a petition with the São Paulo Public Prosecutor’s Office.
