Public policies for social inclusion of transvestites and transsexuals

an analysis of the "transcidadania" program

Abstract

Brazil is the country that most kills transvestites and transsexuals in the world. In addition to the high mortality rate, these groups accumulate, within the LGBT population, lower life expectancy, lower levels of schooling, and higher rates of school dropout. Poorly qualified and persecuted by social rejection, transvestites and transsexuals have very little representation in the labor market, and many of them need to engage in prostitution as their main way of subsistence. In a democratic state of law, which has in itself a series of basic assumptions, such as the right of freedom and equality, means by which we seek to grant and defend human dignity, as the foundation of our political life and our legal system, it is necessary to recognize that not all groups can exercise properly their citizenship. Having this in sight, the City of São Paulo created a program that facilitates the access of transvestites and transsexuals in a vulnerability situation to health, education and work capacitation, which we intend to analyze here as a public policy aimed at social inclusion. The Transcidadania Program seeks to promote changes in society and preach tolerancefor diversity and respect for gender identities. Because it is a recent program, however, it still needs to have its structure and results evaluated. In this sense, this paper intends to verify, from documents, articles and the visit of one of the authors to the Program, its organization, its structure, and the organizational and management models that guide its activities.