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Dámaris Julieth León Guamán, known as “Karicia” to her friends and “Biscochito” to her TikTok followers, a 38-year-old trans woman, arrived in Argentina from Ecuador in 2018. She wanted to open a dance academy, study makeup, and have a better life in a country with a Gender Identity Law . On April 1st, her friends in the Buenos Aires neighborhood of Constitución learned that she had been murdered. “We hope her death doesn't go unpunished and that justice is served,” her friends plead.

The case is being handled by the National Criminal and Correctional Court No. 49, under Judge Ángeles Mariana Gómez Maiorano, and the Prosecutor's Office No. 30 is involved. So far there is one detainee, the man with whom she shared her home and whom some sources recognize as her partner, who is charged with homicide. 

Her sisters arrived in Argentina this week to make arrangements for the repatriation of her body. In the formal request, her sister Mercedes shared that Julieth emigrated to “find a better life and, above all, to financially support our mother (…) who is currently 78 years old.” 

“Whenever there is a hate crime, we request a meeting with the prosecutor's office, and even with the court, to present them with our hate crime report . We ask them to investigate the femicide and/or hate crime angle, depending on the case,” María Rachid, a member of the LGBT Advocacy group .

The Hate Crime Map, compiled by this media outlet since 2019, recorded four murders of transgender and transvestite people last year: Zoe López García, Liliana “La Chaqueña”, Sofía Fernández, and Sofía Agustina Bravo. Meanwhile, the report on transvesticide and transfemicide by the Supreme Court and the Women's Office revealed that between 2016 and 2021, 32 legal cases of transvesticide/transfemicide were initiated, involving 32 victims. Thirty-three percent of these victims were of foreign origin.

The dreams of migration

With hoop earrings, a yellow top, sometimes a skirt and boots, and other times jogging pants, Julieth captivated her followers with her dance moves and genuine smile in her TikTok videos : she enjoyed what she did. “She was a professional dancer,” proudly stated Konny Macías, a friend, colleague, and fellow Ecuadorian of Karicia. “She always wanted to have a dance academy because she loved to dance,” she recalled.

Biscochito's dream was the dream of many. "To have her own things, to rest peacefully, to return to her country with her family, to help the people she loves most, to buy a house, to maintain a business," Konny described. 

“The situation of our migrant sex workers in Argentina is extremely vulnerable. Most of them come from Peru, Colombia, and Ecuador. They say they are displaced from their countries by the violence they face, because the state doesn't provide public policies for their sector, and also because of the severe economic crisis. So they migrate to Argentina, choosing this country as a more gender-friendly environment because it has a gender identity law, and they feel somewhat more protected here by the legislation in place,” Georgina Orellano, general secretary of AMMAR . She met Judith at Casa Roja , a space run by AMMAR and managed by sex workers, where various women go to inquire about immigration procedures or their housing situation, among other things.

The support of my colleagues

Most transgender migrants work in the sex industry and are the primary breadwinners for their families, Orellano shared. “Each month they contribute to improving the quality of life for their families and also give their nephews, nieces, brothers, or sisters the opportunity to attend university and pursue a career,” she stated.

Brisa Miranda, a 49-year-old trans woman who arrived in Argentina from Quito, Peru in 2009, met Julieth at the corner of Garay and San José streets. She invited her to share the bus stop with her, and from that moment on they became close friends. 

“We saw each other every day, we worked together. We would leave at 11, we would return home at 4 or 5 in the morning. We would go for walks, we would go to the beach in the summer, she would invite me to her birthday parties, to her house,” she said, in an interview with Presentes.

Julieth had tattoos of her poodles' paws on each arm, and in several of her TikTok videos, she can be seen dancing with them. "She would give her life for her dogs; she celebrated their birthdays. They were like her children," Brisa said. 

She remembered her friend as “a very calm person” who radiated a “lovely energy.” “Julieth was a very beloved person. She was loved by all the girls. She was wonderful; when support was needed, she was there,” she shared. 

Being a sex worker and a migrant: double vulnerability

For Brisa, who also had to leave her country, migrating “is a great sacrifice.” First, she decided to leave because of the violence she faced in her country. “Sometimes it becomes difficult for us because perhaps in our country we don’t feel progress, the identity we want; that the people, your community, your president aren’t with you. So, why would I stay? To be marginalized, beaten, to have no rights,” she explained.

However, upon arriving in Argentina, their situation remained vulnerable. “They stop us for anything, they search us, they kick us. Working in Constitución as a migrant is awful. They call you by your male name and we don't like that. For defending ourselves, they file charges against us for being transvestites and not having legal Argentine documents,” she stated. 

“ Statistics show that migrant women are the most targeted by the police, experiencing institutional violence, having their money stolen during police procedures in public spaces, and in raids ,” Orellano added. She also warned that “the police have often exploited women’s lack of knowledge of the laws in our country to create fear that they risk being deported.”
“As foreigners, we want the same rights as everyone else,” Brisa emphasized. She also demanded justice for her friend and for “all the murdered women.” “It’s unjust that they’re killing us like this. I hope her death doesn’t go unpunished and that justice is served,” she concluded.