Duda Salabert | |
|---|---|
.jpg) Salabert in 2023 | |
| Member of theChamber of Deputies | |
| Assumed office 1 February 2023 | |
| Constituency | Minas Gerais |
| Councillor of Belo Horizonte | |
| In office 1 January 2021 – 1 February 2023 | |
| Constituency | At-large |
| Personal details | |
| Born | Duda Salabert Rosa Belo Horizonte,Minas Gerais, Brazil |
| Party | PDT (2019–present) |
| Other political affiliations | PSOL (2017–2019) |
| Spouse | |
| Alma mater | Minas Gerais State University |
| Occupation | Teacher |
Duda Salabert Rosa is a Brazilian politician,environmentalist, andteacher.[1] In 2020, she became the firsttransgender person to serve on thecity council of Belo Horizonte after campaigning as aDemocratic Labour Party candidate. She was elected with over 37,000 votes, more than any city council candidate in the history ofMinas Gerais at the time.
Since 2023, she has represented the state of Minas Gerais as afederal deputy.[2]
Salabert began working as a teacher in 2002. She cofoundedTransvest, anon-governmental organization focused on combatingtransphobia.[3]
Duda is alesbian,[4] married to Raíssa. In 2019, they had a child and chose agender-neutral name forthem.[5]
In 2018, Salabert campaigned as aSocialism and Liberty Party candidate to represent the state of Minas Gerais in theBrazilian Senate.[7] Salabert said that she had received invitations to campaign for other offices but chose the Senate as a form of provocation, noting that theetymology of the termsenate relates tomen and that "if it is a space made for gentlemen, atravesti woman seeking this space is extremely provocative".[a] She additionally stated that she had been targeted onsocial media and that she feared escalation to physical violence. She was 36 years old at the time.[8] Salabert received more than 350,000 votes,[7] not winning the election but becoming the first transgender person to run for the Brazilian Senate.[9]
In April 2019, Salabert left the Socialism and Liberty Party, criticizing the party for "structural transphobia" andanthropocentrism.[10]
In 2020, Salabert was elected to thecity council of Belo Horizonte after campaigning as a member of the Democratic Labour Party. She was the first transgender person elected to theBelo Horizonte city council, and with 37,000 votes in support, the most-voted-for city council candidate in Minas Gerais history at the time.[7] In December 2020, the school where Salabert taught received an email threatening both her and the school if she remained in her position, and she was fired.[9]
In June 2021, Salabert announced that she would campaign for a Senate seat in 2022. She had previously pledged to serve for her entire 4-year term on the Belo Horizonte city council, but stated that she had been advised by theUnited Nations and theInter-American Commission on Human Rights to seek a position in the federal government so that she could be protected by thePolícia Federal after having received death threats.[9]
In 2022 Salabert andErika Hilton became the first two openly transgender people elected to theNational Congress of Brazil, with both of them elected to itsChamber of Deputies.[11][12]