March for the transfemicide of Alejandra Ironici: “Unity will be the only way to stop them from killing us”
A massive mobilization marched through the streets of downtown Santa Fe to demand justice for the murder of a beloved historical figure in the trans movement.
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SANTA FE, Argentina. Waving rainbow flags, carrying signs of all sizes and thicknesses, and offering loose flowers and bouquets, the LGBTI+ community in Santa Fe mourned the transfemicide of one of its leading figures: Alejandra Ironici . Unlike previous marches, a large crowd gathered in Plaza 25 de Mayo, improvising a stage/altar on the fence and steps of the Santa Fe courthouse.
Facing the crowd, trans and travesti people from Santa Fe and the surrounding area called for unity and demanded that the cis people present uphold the commitment that Alejandra had always asked of them—and which was finally realized yesterday. “It will be the only way for us not to be killed. For us to survive this patriarchy, to survive legislators and those who are supposed to represent us but represent us poorly. That is what Alejandra leaves us: unity, because we are here today, but we don't know about tomorrow. Alejandra Ironici, present. Now and forever,” shouted trans activist Shazmín Ramos.
The loudspeaker was passed from hand to hand. Friends, colleagues from her teaching and healthcare work, and activists remembered, their voices breaking, fighting back tears, this woman who opened doors to countless opportunities and rights for the entire community. There were many tears and much anger, but also much love. Trans children, trans adults, and communities from neighboring cities raised their voices in the plaza. And she was there, in every testimony.
“We want love, and we find that our own love is killing us. Is that what awaits transvestites, trans people? To know love and have love take our lives… That’s not fair, that’s why we’re here to demand justice, so that this person pays for what he did, because she didn’t deserve to die this way. I want justice,” said Lucy Gimenez, one of Alejandra’s closest friends and fellow activists, referring to the only person arrested so far, whose arraignment hearing will take place in the coming hours.
“I can’t believe she’s not here, complaining as always.”
On Monday, 25 de Mayo Square became Alejandra's square twice over. During the morning, her closest friends arrived, driven by grief and helplessness, to gather and begin the fight for justice in Ironici's name. "I can't believe she's not here, demanding justice as always," was the most common refrain among those embracing each other in a show of support. And in the afternoon, the demand, which was also Alejandra's, spread across several blocks: Stop Transfemicides.
Taking the megaphone, activist Victoria Stéfano remembered Ironici as someone who “always fought, who was there in the hospital, who told us how to approach starting hormone replacement therapy. She was that comrade who welcomed you to the LGBT Center to tell you how to apply for student scholarships. She was that comrade who greeted you with a coffee in the morning, and you left there knowing that someone had listened to you and that you cared. That's who Alejandra was for the trans activists of Santa Fe. That's why we're here, because we owe a debt to the path she forged. And we assume the political responsibility of bringing justice to Alejandra.”
Let violence not be met with indifference
For her part, Macarena Cornejo, a trans activist from Paraná , also raised her voice and called on trans and travesti people in Santa Fe to begin “occupying the seats” to change the reality for the community. Then she looked at the rest of the people gathered and addressed them: “I want to tell you that violence is not something any of you are indifferent to. Violence is costing us, first and foremost, people of different ages, social classes, beliefs, sexualities, and identities. And it could be any one of you watching me.”
And she continued: “I’m fed up with society’s indifference to the deaths of trans women, trans people, and transvestites. I’m fed up with us being 300,000 strong on June 3rd and only filling half the plaza when Santa Fe, sadly, is missing Alejandra Ironici today. Today, you’re missing someone who stood up for all of you and many others. Really confront the violence, and if you’re going to do it, do it for transvestites and trans people. Tell everyone that the cause of transvestites and trans people must also be embraced.”
Speaking for Alejandra
Trans men also spoke out. Martín, a close friend of Alejandra's, took the microphone for the first time: “I accompanied her to so many marches, and being here today marching and talking about her is very powerful. I always refused to speak, but today is a good moment to raise my voice and tell you that I'm here and that I carry her in my soul.”
And Walter, who came from Cayastá, added: “They took away a leader of the community. She fought from childhood until the day she died for all the rights we enjoy today. But having won some rights doesn't mean everything is resolved. We must be united as a community under the same banner. We can show society that we are human beings who study, work, and have responsibilities.”
Among the last voices was Sabrina from the Xadres de Niñeces Trans group, who emphasized that she came to the plaza “to remind everyone that trans children exist. My son is only 6 years old and I am not going to sit around waiting for violence to take his life.”
The activist who paved the way
Gerardo Picotto, a gay activist and member of the Socialist Party, recalled Alejandra's early years of struggle and the great path she left open for new generations, including her comrades.
“This morning I was thinking about Lohana Berkins’ quote that said, ‘You have to have courage in a world of capitalist worms to be a butterfly.’ And if there’s one thing that characterized Alejandra, it was that. She had a lot of courage; she was a woman who spoke for herself, but always for her comrades as well. We argued a lot because of our different points of view, but she was a woman who always moved forward,” she tells Presentes .
“If there’s one thing that characterized her,” she continues, “it’s that she was always opening doors. I remember the first times we went into the Law School at UNL. No trans woman had ever been there before, and she walked in proudly, because we had an outreach project with other colleagues. She was always the first in everything, but she also paved the way for the rest of the women. We find it terribly unfair.”
Picotto adds: “Perhaps they killed the best of them all, because we know that so many things that still need to be achieved have been left unfinished. We are left with a great void, it hurts us deeply, her death and the deaths of all our trans sisters are heartbreaking. A huge path is opening up so that trans children can be freer and live in a completely different world. And even if they try to teach us a lesson with violence, as they did today, there will be many of us demanding it.”
The trans quota at UNL, an achievement of Alejandra
For trans activist Noly Trujillo, the loss is also irreparable. “I will always have Ale in my heart. I will always remember her craziness, her energy, her perseverance, her desire to grow, but above all, her friendship. She was my friend. Today, a friend was taken from me. For the community, for the LGBTQ+ community, she left a huge mark that must not be forgotten. Alejandra was a great role model,” she emphasizes in an interview with Presentes , adding: “I don’t know if there will be a before and after. For those of us who loved her, yes; but unfortunately, not for society. It’s full of people who take your life as if it were nothing, who don’t care about anything. It will take many years to change these situations.”
One of the last victories in which Alejandra played a leading role was the passage of a quota for trans, travesti, and non-binary people at the National University of the Littoral ( . Oscar Vallejos, general secretary of ADUL (the UNL Teachers' Association), emphasizes: “She was a role model intellectually and also when it came to taking to the streets. On a day like today, she would have been out there mobilizing people. She was working with Fabián González on the anniversary of the transphobic murder of Cuqui Bonetto in Rincón, a case that remains unpunished. These kinds of role models are not easy to replace; their vision, their commitment, and their ability to overcome all partisan obstacles. She taught us how to do politics.”
And Mariano Figueroa, who worked with Ironici at the Iturraspe Hospital, spoke of the achievements of the trans activist from Santa Fe. He emphasized that this society “deserves men and women like Alejandra, fighters who are not indifferent, who play a leading role, who are capable of stepping forward and standing tall to fight for their rights.”
After the public gathering, Alejandra's remains were laid in state overnight in the provincial capital. On Tuesday morning, they will be transferred to Tostado, where the parents and siblings of the trans activist, who was murdered at age 43, live.
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