Support Casa Resistências, a shelter and community center for lesbian and bisexual women – cis or trans – from the Complexo da Maré favelas, in Brazil.
Being a woman in Brazil is definitely not easy!
And the challenges are even greater for lesbian and bisexual women who live in the favelas.
The favelas, sometimes referred to as slums, are very large and densely populated working class neighborhoods, with a majority black and female residents. These areas are often left behind and marginalized when it comes to social services, so the favela communities have to take things into their own hands.
One of these initiatives is Casa Resistências, located in the Complexo da Maré, one of the biggest favelas in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil.
The shelter and community center supports lesbian and bisexual women (cis or trans) from the favelas – and also contributes to the community with events, courses, and cultural activities.
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For this incredible place to continue protecting the lesbian and bisexual women of Maré, they need your help.
"This place saved my life.
Because of the violence I suffered, I was on the verge of madness. I arrived at Casa Resistências in really bad shape, but I was received with affection and professional care.
Without the Casa, I would probably be living on the streets or in a mental institution. This is what my family wanted for me, because I am a lesbian.
I hope that Casa Resistências can be financially self-sustainable, so that there is no risk of it closing.”
* Fictitious name
"Casa Resistências has given a light to girls and women from inside and outside Complexo da Maré.
Women who were previously forced to experience violence in relationships or even within their families now know that they have a place to go.
I feel safer knowing that a place like this exists.
My dream is that the house grows ever bigger and that it can continuously help more and more people inside and outside the community."
"Long live this project. There are many lesbians, many transgender women, many LGBT+ people in Maré and sometimes we just need a lighthouse to guide us.
At the beginning of the pandemic, Casa Resistências helped me with food baskets and to this day I am still being supported.
As a black woman from the favela, it has been very important to take self-defense classes there and connect with the other girls."
Casa Resistências does a LOT of work! And their team is all volunteers. So your donation will ensure that the Casa's projects continue to advance and change the lives of lesbian and bisexual women, cis or trans, in Maré for the better.
In addition to providing shelter for up to 6 months for 6 women at a time, Casa Resistências is a place of vibrant culture, affection, and empowerment for the lesbian and bisexual women, cis or trans, of Maré.
It also offers various courses – such as self-care, self-defense, and other professional skillshares – to empower and protect the community of Maré.
Access to mental health care is an almost impossible mission for an LGBT+ person in Brazil: it is expensive, there are few spots available in public services and, to make matters worse, it's not just any professional who knows how to support an LGBT+ person.
That's why Casa Resistências offers psychological counseling to lesbian and bisexual women, cis or trans, from the favela who are survivors of LGBTphobic violence.
During their stay at Casa Resistências, the women build their "Maps of Wishes" – a plan for what they want to create and do for their lives.
Based on these wishes, Casa Resistências thinks about public policies and partnerships to help the women get to the socioeconomic conditions they need to move forward with dignity, and protection from violence.
Casa Resistências is coordinated by the Lesbian Collective Resistance of Maré, which has been fighting for the rights of the favela lesbians since 2016.
The space is located in Complexo da Maré – one of the largest favelas of Rio de Janeiro – and is the first in Brazil with the specific focus of supporting LGBT+ women from the favelas, and sheltering women who were expelled from their homes due to lesbophobia, biphobia, and/or transphobia.
Casa Resistências has the capacity to house up to 6 women for a period of 3 to 6 months, according to their need.
Knowing all the difficulties faced by LGBT+ women in the Brazilian favelas, Casa Resistências serves as a possibility of a new beginning for these survivors.
