Social protection and production of care for transvestites and transgender women in homeless situation in the city of Belo Horizonte (MG)

Abstract

This qualitative research aimed to identify how social protection and the production of care for transvestites and transgender women in homeless situation are given in the public policies of health and social assistance in the city of Belo Horizonte (MG), based on the perception of those people. The instruments used for data collection were participant observation, semi-structured and in-depth interviews, and the focus group technique. The data showed that the interviewees know and access various services of the Unified Health System (SUS) and the Unified Social Assistance System (Suas). However, these are not aligned with their diversity and singularities and (re)-produce violence. The embracing attitude of service professionals appeared as an indicative of good service. However, situations of violations of the right to which they are subjected in the daily life of the services have been reported. The main reported violence relates to the criteria and rules of operation, lack of privacy, discrimination, and sexual harassment. This study reaffirms the
importance and necessity of policies and services to be thought and implemented in the logic of collective construction, listening and dialoguing with these subjects who have rights, respecting the specificities of their trajectories and demands.