LUA CORUJEIRA

Anyky Lima, born in Rio de Janeiro, was expelled from her house at the age of 12 for the mere fact of being transgender.

At times of the Dictatorship in Brazil, the difficulty struggles and financial needs, led her to become a prostitute in the city of Victoria. She stayed for six years until with great effort she managed to return to her hometown (Rio de Janeiro) and started a career as a seamstress for Samba schools, without leaving her job as a prostitute because of the low income.

Living in the times of a military regime is hard, imagine how hard it is for someone who is transgender. Anyky faced oppression, discrimination and violence during decades. She relates that almost every weekend she was arrested with some false allegations, to then receive abuse or be forced to clean military barracks. In addition, she was extremely humiliated, sometimes her arrest was prolonged so that her facial hair grew and everyone could identify her as transgender  

At the age of thirty she moved to Minas Gerais, where she continued her life as a sex worker. The use of over-the-counter hormones, which she started taking as soon as she left home and the various applications of industrial silicone to shape the body affected her health over time. At age 50, Anyky retired from the streets and focused on participating in campaigns in organizations like Associaçao Nacional Travestis e Transexuais (Antra). She also started to run accommodations for transvestites and transsexual women in Belo Horizonte and ended acting as the mother to many women who, like her at the time, had been neglected.

Now at 70 years of age she lives with young transgender girls who treat her like her mother and she continues to be active in advocating for the rights of transvestites and transsexuals. Brazil is the  number one  country in murders of transvestites and transsexuals with a life expectancy that does not exceed 35 years, Anyky is a fighter and a clear example of improvement.