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Gay pride in the favelas

Sam Cowie, Rio de JaneiroSeptember 28, 2013

Despite the legalization of gay marriage in Rio de Janeiro, homophobic attitudes and attacks are regular features of life in the city's poorest areas. In the Acari neighborhood, locals are taking a stand against homophobia.

https://p.dw.com/p/19pdG

Brazil’s capital is often cited as one of the world’s top gay travel destinations - almost a third of its visitors are part of the global LGBT community. The world famous Ipanema beach in the city’s affluent South Zone even boasts its own gay stretch. But away from such tourist hotspots, in Brazil’s urban favelas, the reality for gay people living on the periphery is somewhat different.

In poor neighborhoods such as Acari, in the north of the capital, homophobic attitudes are deeply entrenched. Recent data from the Brazilian government suggests that attacks against gay Brazilians are on the increase, the number of incidents reported in Rio rising by 50 procent between 2011 and 2012.

Organized by the local samba school, Acari’s gay pride event attracted around 4,000 people this year. The annual parade reflects a growing trend amongst poor communities in Rio aiming to fight back against prejudice.