Mexico creates first mausoleum for trans women
Activist Kenya Cuevas laid the first stone for the trans mausoleum. “What unites us here today is not death, it is memory,” Cuevas said.
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MEXICO CITY, Mexico. Seven years ago, the transphobic murder of Paola Buenrostro changed the paradigm regarding the pursuit of justice for trans women in Mexico and the value of friends and chosen families in that journey. Part of that path has been paved by activist Kenya Cuevas, who on May 22 laid the first stone for what will be the first trans mausoleum in the country.
Kenya Cuevas came up with the idea of a space to dignify the death and memory of trans women who are murdered , who die from illness without access to health care, who die by suicide, and who often, due to the neglect of their families, do not have a space that honors their life and death.
“When my friend Paola was killed, it was unthinkable for me at that moment to seek a space like this. However, there were many moments of struggle in which I brought this issue to light. I presented this project, and many authorities told me for seven years that it was unthinkable. Today it is a reality,” Kenya said at the event inaugurating the construction of the trans mausoleum.
The mausoleum is located in the San Lorenzo Tezonco in the Iztapalapa in eastern Mexico City and will have 146 spaces.
This land was donated by Mayor Clara Brugada, and it was announced that construction will be carried out with the support of the Mexico City Attorney General's Office . The mausoleum is expected to be completed in two months.
“What unites us is not death, it is memory.”
In February 2022, Kenya Cuevas announced the creation of this mausoleum. But since 2016, after the murder of Paola Buenrostro, Kenya has dedicated herself to providing dignified burials for trans women who were murdered and died due to institutional neglect.
Cuevas' activism has led her to recover the bodies of trans women from the Forensic Medical Service (SEMEFO) so they are not buried in mass graves. This is possible thanks to the founding charter of the organization she leads, Casa de las Muñecas Tiresias (House of Tiresias Dolls), which allows them to claim, identify, mourn, and bury the bodies, thus dignifying their deaths.
She did it with Paola, with La Soñaré , and so many more. She has even provided wakes for transgender migrant women to dignify their lives and their deaths, as happened with Kaory.
“When we stop remembering people, that’s when they truly die. I want women to live for all eternity, and for their lives and identities to be recognized. This is part of justice, or at least my justice. The right to a dignified death should be for everyone. What unites us here today is not death, it’s memory,” Kenya Cuevas told Presentes .
“An achievement in recognizing our identity after death”
This mausoleum is located in Iztapalapa, a peripheral borough in Mexico City with high rates of hate crimes, according to activist Andrea Luna, representative of the Trans Collective for the Freedom to Be and Decide and president of the National Trans Community Network .
For Luna, who focuses her work in this borough, the construction of this mausoleum here represents a significant achievement. “It is the result of years of struggle to have our gender identity recognized even after death, and to stop the tragic fate of our sisters being buried in mass graves. I hope this will be replicated in other places,” Luna said.
“It’s an opportunity for us to be remembered after death for who we were, what we did, with joy, and also with sadness. But that it bears our name, the one we chose, so we aren’t forgotten. Cemeteries bring back very bad memories of violence for me. I know that if I die, I would like to be here with all my sisters ,” Kendra Díaz, a 32-year-old trans woman, told Presentes . She is a beneficiary of the Catherinne Danielle Márquez Shelter , the second shelter for trans women opened by the organization Casa de las Muñecas Tiresias .
The groundbreaking ceremony was attended by trans women who coordinate the organization in Mexico City and Cuernavaca, trans women who are beneficiaries of the Tiresias Dollhouses, activists, trans public officials; also the Attorney General of Mexico City, Ernestina Godoy; the mayor of Iztapalapa, Clara Brugada; Geraldina González de la Vega, head of the Council to Prevent and Eliminate Discrimination in Mexico City (Copred) ; among other authorities.
@presenteslatam First mausoleum for trans women in Mexico🏳️⚧️🇲🇽 #trans #transrights #kenyacuevas #cdmx #lgbt ♬ Epic Inspiration – DM Production
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