Maliyah Benson

Honors English II

25 May 2019

LGBTQ+ Discrimination

Two men held hands while they walked down the street. They did nothing else, but the

people around them were disgusted. Later they came home covered in bruises and cuts.

Countries like Myanmar, Malaysia, and Brazil encourage hate crimes against people who express

homosexuality or are a part of the LGBTQ+ community. The punishments for being associated

with the community is jail time or death. The people who are against homosexuals take matters

into their own hands and show acts of violence toward innocent people while their governments

praise the violence. These countries need to stop the violence and leave those innocent people

alone.

In the country, Myanmar, practicing homosexual or transgender activities is illegal. The

punishment will be time in jail. The police officers who handle the arrests are inappropriate in

the arresting process. “Sometimes they make arrests,’ she said, adding that people are released

after they are made to ‘remove their dress” (Myint) and (Htwe). The people who identify as the

opposite gender are told to embarrass themselves in front of officers by removing their dress.

The “offender” that has to show authorities an area that they aren’t proud of is humiliating and

shouldn’t be acceptable. Officers continue to embarrass transgender individuals by sexually

assaulting them while making arrests against them. ​Shin Thant, crowned as Miss Trans Grand

Myanmar, has experienced sexual harassment from police officers while she was being arrested.

She is tired of seeing transgendered women having to trade sexually with officers (Hogan). The
victims are pressured into partaking into sexual activities to stay out of jail. People who identify

as gay are also affected by abuse from officers. ​“...police commonly use it to harass, intimidate

and extort money from gay... ‘When the police catch a couple in the dark, or having sex, they

only [demand] bribes from gay or MSM people...never charge [heterosexual people] like this, so

why do the police do this kind of discrimination?’ (Aung) and (Soe). Heterosexual couples are

able to show sexual acts and receive no punishments.​ ​The authorities are abusing their power

against the members of the LGBTQ+ community and can pick and choose who to arrest.

People part of the LGBTQ+ community aren’t welcomed in the country, Malaysia.

Violence against these innocent groups are covered up and people are afraid to speak about it.

Earlier this year, Prime Minister Datuk Mohamad Din Ketapi, claimed there weren’t any people

of the LGBTQ+ community in his country after he was questioned during a tourist fair

(McKirdy). Political figures ignore the cries of the community by claiming that the individuals

that are part of the community don’t exist. This isn’t physical violence, but is discriminating.

Even though gay people are seen as sinners, they are seen in the media. According to an

unofficial traveling guide for Malaysia, “Similarly, gay characters are only allowed to appear in

films and other media if they either die or ​repent…”​ (“LGBT Rights In Malaysia”). Malaysia is

indirectly threatening gay people by showing punishments in media. Authorities and the

government have influenced creators to excluded any media beneficial to the LGBTQ+.​ ​The

government officials turn a blind eye to the violence against the community. “​A transgender

woman, Suki was beaten up by a group of assailants last week with sticks and plastic pipes in

Seremban, a town south of the Malaysian capital Kuala Lumpur” (Yi). The attack was close to

the Capital, though “no one” reported the violent acts. People are afraid of speaking out against
violence because they are afraid to be associated with the LGBTQ+. Malaysia is a powerful

country that has control of their civilians. Though they choose to leave out the homosexuals and

transgender individuals.

Lastly, the country Brazil doesn’t have a high tolerance for the LGBTQ+ community.

Hate crimes have increased, and people are afraid to go out in public while being themselves.

“Brazil is also the most dangerous country in the world to be trans, according to the Trans

Murder Monitoring project, with at least 167 people killed in the 12 months up to September

2018” (Lopez). The trans community is looked down upon in Brazil. People are risking their

lives to express who they are, while no one is doing anything for the community. The Trans

community is the punching bag of the hate crimes. A trans women walked down the street alone,

“She suffered broken ribs, a ruptured spleen and head injuries that required seven stitches. Police

have arrested eight men suspected of carrying out the attack” (Lopez). The amount of pain and

violence she went through during the attack is horrible. Although she is hurt, her image is not.

She isn’t hiding who she is and letting the attackers stop her from expressing herself. Not only

trans people suffer from harassment, gay couples are affected too. “...left some gay and lesbian

couples wondering if it was even still safe to hold hands in public: ‘He has unleashed all the

demons in Brazilian society and they are out there now: unmasked and vicious and violent’

(“Brazil’s fearful LGBT community prepares for a ‘proud homophobe”). A congressman of

Brazil, Jair Bolsonaro, agreed that with a claim that he hated gay people. He encourages

homophobes to attack people of the community. Gay couples are scared to go out because of

their ] opinion. In the end, the people part of the LGBTQ+ community are still people. It would

just be as bad a straight man hurting another straight man. Violence doesn’t have an excuse.
 The amount of harassment and violence members of the LGBTQ+ community has to go

through everyday, is saddening. In the end, they are still people and don’t deserve punishments if

they haven’t hurt others. The countries Myanmar, Malaysia, and Brazil need to handle their

civilians and to help the community even though they don’t agree with their lifestyles. Almost

everywhere else in the world, homosexuals and trans people are accepted. These other countries

need to update their laws and become more accepting.

 Works Cited

Hogan, Libby, and Libby Hogan. “Myanmar LGBT Pride Out in Force, But Laws Lag Behind.”

VOA​, VOA, 30 Jan. 2019,

www.voanews.com/a/myanmar-kicks-off-pride-week/4763156.html.

McKirdy, Euan. “There Are No Gay People in Malaysia Says Tourism Minister.” ​CNN,​ Cable

News Network, 7 Mar. 2019,

www.cnn.com/2019/03/07/asia/malaysia-tourism-minister-gay-denial-intl/index.html.

Phillips, Tom. “Brazil's Fearful LGBT Community Prepares for a 'Proud Homophobe'.” ​The

Guardian,​ Guardian News and Media, 27 Oct. 2018,

www.theguardian.com/world/2018/oct/27/dispatch-sao-paulo-jair-bolsonaro-victory-lgbt-c

ommunity-fear.

“Prejudice and Progress: a Snapshot of LGBT Rights in Myanmar.” ​The Myanmar Times,​

www.mmtimes.com/lifestyle/26228-prejudice-and-progress-a-snapshot-of-lgbt-rights-in-m

yanmar.html.

Reuters, and Reuters. “Brutal Attack On A Trans Woman Sparks Fear In Malaysia's LGBTQ

Community.” ​HuffPost​, HuffPost, 24 Aug. 2018,

www.huffpost.com/entry/malaysia-lgbtq-community-fears_n_5b7f6aa8e4b0348585ff0848

Soe, Hein Ko. “Myanmar's LGBT Community: between Old Laws and Enduring Stigma.”

Frontier Myanmar​,

frontiermyanmar.net/en/myanmars-lgbt-community-between-old-laws-and-enduring-stigm

a.