Tamara Adrián | |
|---|---|
 Adrián in 2008 | |
| Deputy of the National Assembly of Venezuela | |
| Assumed office 5 January 2016 | |
| Constituency | Capital District |
| Personal details | |
| Born | (1954-02-20)20 February 1954 (age 71) Caracas,Venezuela |
| Political party | Popular Will |
| Alma mater | Andrés Bello Catholic University |
| Profession | Lawyer |
Tamara Adrián (born 20 February 1954, inCaracas) is aVenezuelan politician, who was elected to theNational Assembly of Venezuela in the2015 Venezuelan parliamentary election.[1] She is noted as the first openlytransgender person elected to office in Venezuela, and only the second openly transgender member of a national legislature in the Western Hemisphere.[2] Some early media coverage credited her as the first openly transgender member of a legislature in the Americas, but this was later corrected due to the election ofMichelle Suárez Bértora to theSenate of Uruguay in 2014.[2] In 2023 Tamara became the first openly transgender candidate in a presidential election.[3]
She is a member of thePopular Will party, one of the forces in opposition to thePSUV-led government ofNicolás Maduro.[2] Within this party, she organized a social movement called Pro-Inclusion, aiming at promoting equal rights.[4] She took heroath of office at theNational Assembly of Venezuela on January 14, 2015.[5] During her term in office, Adrián intends to promote proper access topublic records on identity,same-sex marriage andhuman rights.
Tamara graduated fromAndrés Bello Catholic University in 1976. She then went on to obtain her doctorate in law with high honors fromUniversity of Paris II Panthéon-Assas in 1982. She also earned a diploma in comparative law from theParis Institute of Comparative Law in 1982. In 2016, Adrián completed Harvard University'sJohn F. Kennedy School of Government program for Senior Executives in State and Local Government as aDavid Bohnett LGBTQ Victory Institute Leadership Fellow.
Prior to her election to the Venezuelan legislature, Adrián worked as a lawyer andLGBT activist,[6] including serving on the board of theInternational Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Trans and Intersex Association[1] and the organizing committee of theInternational Day Against Homophobia, Transphobia and Biphobia.[7] She was forced to register her candidacy under her deadname, as Venezuelan law does not currently permit a person that wasassigned male at birth to legally change their name to a female name.[6] In 2002, she underwentgender reassignment surgery in Thailand.[8] In 2004, she submitted an appeal to theSupreme Court of Justice to have her identity legally recognized; as of 2016, it still had not been granted.[9][10]
Tamara Adrián believes that thestigma and discrimination surrounding the transgender community stimulates poverty,marginalization, and violence against them. To her, these problems are unacceptable under international laws of human rights.[11] She was motivated to take a role in her government in response to political activists being arrested in Venezuela.[12] In 2014, there werenationwide protests regarding the democratic and economic conditions of the time. In response to these protests, PresidentNicolás Maduro ordered for the arrest of political protesters. According toForo Penal, over 13,000 people have been arrested since 2014 because of protests relating to the Venezuelan government.[13]
Before being elected as National Assembly deputy, Tamara was featured in the 2011 documentary filmYo, indocumentada along with two other Venezuelan transgender women that strive to change their legal name in the country.[14]
The 2016 filmTamara was partly inspired in her life. Tamara made a cameo in the film with the role of a university rector.[15]