Interviewee: Macarena Pérez, Transgender Peer Educator, Centro de Promoción y Solidaridad Humana (CEPROSH), Dominican Republic
Interviewer: Betty Alvarez, Consultant, FHI 360


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Transgender Day of Remembrance (TDOR) is an annual observance on November 20th that honors the memory of lives lost in acts of transphobic violence. On TDOR, LINKAGES is honored to feature the work and perspectives of one of our trans peer educators – Macarena Pérez. Macarena works with CEPROSH in the Dominican Republic to help trans women understand their right to live free of violence and access services if they experience violence. The interviewer, Betty Alvarez, is a LINKAGES consultant based in the Dominican Republic.


What does Transgender Day of Remembrance mean to you?

For me, this is a very important and significant day. Just as there is a day that commemorates the fight against violence suffered by cisgender women, we – the transgender community – deserve a day, too. It makes me proud that there is a day on which members of the global transgender community that have become victims of gender-based violence can be remembered, because we are also an important part of society.

How does your work as a peer educator help prevent violence against transgender people? How does it help ensure transgender people have access to services if they are victims of violence?

Being a peer educator has empowered me and helped me understand the importance of education and training. Being able to share my knowledge and life experiences with my peers has strengthened my own identity as a transgender individual and, in turn, helps my peers empower themselves and know their right to live free of violence.

I teach my peers about important gender-based violence information – including its links with HIV – provided to us by the LINKAGES project and CEPROSH. I explain “La Ruta” (route of available services) and give information about our rights and how to identify violence. The members of my community feel more confident in seeking health and gender-based violence services and demanding that their rights be upheld.

What kind of support is available to transgender people in your community if they become victims of violence? How is this different than the support that was available in the past?

Transgender people in my community have several services available to them if they become victims of gender-based violence. There are a number of clinical and psychological services provided by CEPROSH, the gender-based violence unit of the District Attorney’s Office, the local police, and peer educators like myself. These services have been strengthened and made more friendly to trans women with support from the LINKAGES project. We have more entry doors to free KP-friendly services than ever before.

What do you believe still needs to be done to end gender-based violence?

To end gender-based violence against trans women, we need to do a very big job. We need to create a new generation with a new way of thinking. We need to educate people from a young age to understand that being different is not a bad thing and that being different does not mean that we do not have the right to live free of stigma and discrimination. We have the right to live a dignified live.

How does gender-based violence against transgender people increase their risk of HIV and make it more difficult for them to access health services?

Many trans people are ignorant of their rights. We have been mistreated for so long that many of us are afraid to seek help because we are afraid of being rejected and discriminated against while seeking services. So, after being victims of violence, many transgender people do not go to services on time or do not go at all, increasing their risk of HIV and other physical and mental health complications.

Why is it important for HIV programs to offer violence services?

It is very important for HIV programs to talk about violence because when people go to a workshop or an educational session about violence in the community, they empower themselves and discover their value as a human being. Then they are more willing to seek services, including HIV services, when needed. As a trans woman, I have fought and will keep fighting so these kinds of programs continue to increase empowerment in the trans community and reduce the incidence of violence.

The participation of LINKAGES and partners and HIV clinics in offering gender-based violence services is fundamental for all key populations. Transgender people in Puerto Plata are now able to get stigma-free and cost-free clinical services, like post-exposure prophylaxis, and psychological counseling if they are victims of violence.

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