Géraldine Zavaleta Rojas
Age 309 Jul 2024
Clamart, Paris (France)
Stabbed
TDoR list ref: tgeu/tdor2024/9-Jul-2024/Géraldine
Géraldine was originally from Peru. She was killed by a client after he discovered that she was trans, and leaves behind the family she was supporting via sex work.
A 22 year-old man is in custody on murder charges.
The 22-year-old man went to the Clamart police station on Tuesday, July 9, and said he had stabbed a sex worker during the night. The incident allegedly took place in the victim's apartment, located in the 16th arrondissement of Paris.
The man "explained to the police that he panicked and was deceived when he discovered Géraldine's transgender identity." He was taken into custody. An investigation into murder based on the victim's sexual orientation or gender identity has been opened, as specified by the Paris prosecutor's office.
Transgender rights groups describe the victim, Géraldine, as a "30-year-old Peruvian trans sex worker" who "worked as an escort to financially support her mother and her entire family." These groups deplore the fact that transphobia continues to kill: "Nothing has changed since the 2018 protests following the murder of Vanesa Campos ," a transgender sex worker shot dead in the Bois de Boulogne, point the finger at the groups Acceptess-T , PASTT and Strass .
They also question the government's inaction in the face of these murders. "Always the same indifference and embarrassed silence from the political class (...) We therefore demand that the next government puts a stop to transphobia ." The associations have therefore launched a call for a rally. It will be held on July 16 at 6 p.m. on the Human Rights Square, Place du Trocadéro, in Paris, they specified in a joint press release.
The announcement of Géraldine's death sparked "deep indignation" from the interministerial delegation for the fight against racism, anti-Semitism and anti-LGBT hatred (DILCRAH). "Transphobic hatred and violence have no place in our society (...) All light must be shed by the courts," wrote the DILCRAH on X on Tuesday.
https://x.com/Clemence_Guette/status/1813263614645539294
https://x.com/acceptesst/status/1811290939882676417
https://x.com/SOShomophobie/status/1810982294800224258
