Police raided a transvestite-trans organization in La Matanza

Various human rights and LGBTQ+ organizations in Argentina condemned the raid on Tuesday, April 23, at the headquarters of MAL (Anti-Discrimination Liberation Movement), founded by the murdered trans activist Diana Sacayán and currently coordinated by her brother Sasha Sacayán. According to Sacayán's account to Presentes, they were meeting with more than 15 women…

April 24, 2019

Various human rights and sexual diversity organizations in Argentina condemned the raid on Tuesday, April 23, at the headquarters of MAL (Anti-Discrimination Liberation Movement), founded by the murdered trans activist Diana Sacayán and currently coordinated by her brother Sasha Sacayán.

According to Sacayán's account to Presentes, they were gathered with more than 15 trans women and transvestites for a training session as part of the Hacemos Futuro program, which is run by the Ministry of Labor. The organization's headquarters in La Matanza is also Sasha's home. When officers from the San Justo DDI (Departmental Investigation Directorate) entered at 10:40 a.m., they were given no details about the case and remained searching the premises until 1:40 p.m.

"It was very hard for the girls because they were terrified. We were just talking about institutional violence and human rights. They are only just starting to organize themselves, to learn about their rights, and it was awful that they experienced this in a place that was supposedly safe for them," Sasha Sacayán told Presentes.

It was the first day of the course, which will have 15 more meetings, once a week.

"The fact that it happened in a space associated with Diana, who was so persecuted by the police in the '90s and brutally murdered, is very symbolic," Sacayán added.

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