Belo Horizonte (Brazil)

Community

Social events, entertainment, bars, festivals, cafes, bookstores, etc.

  • Universidade Federal de Minas Gerais (UFMG)

    • Campus is very LGBT-friendly, about ⅓-½ of Letras students are queer, professors are allies, and “Thirsty Thursdays”  near campus happens at the bar “Cabrals.”

  • Guia Gay BH has events, and parties, etc.

  • Elaganza is a drag collective.

  • CRJ is a youth center with dance and community projects.

  • Vogue Fever is an annual international vogue ball, and Pride parade is huge and falls during June or July.

  • Nightlife:

    • Bars: Maletta building, Yana(lesbian), any vegan restaurant.

    • Clubs: Bar Latino, Gis, Dduck, Fabrica, 1010/Masterplano/Mientras(TechnoQueer), etc.

    • Many carnival blocos have themed LGBT parties, often with homages to Pop Divas.

  • There really is a scene for everyone here, go to Sao Paulo for pride, don’t be afraid to ask to be introduced to new people in the community… Mineiros are really friendly once you find your narrative and groove.

Political/Social Environment

Resources assessing queer- and trans-friendliness in your country

  • Most areas of the city are safe, Pampulha(where campus is), and downtown as well. At night you’ll see trans sex workers of all genders closer to Centro. Don’t be afraid to ask for help, the community watches out for one another. But it's a large city, petty theft happens at big events, go out in groups…. Have some situational awareness, henny.

  • There’s a police delegacy designated for women.

Legal

Laws that are accepting or discriminatory and legal resources specifically for LGBTQ persons

Housing

  • Moradias at UFMG are cute, but far from the city.

  • Apartments below Augusto de lima are normally all good, there are Facebook groups, just type republica/apartamentos LGBT.

  • Roomgo and Airbnb are also options.

Health

Medical resources for LGBTQ persons in your community (special clinics, testing, treatment, pharmacies, etc.)

Culture

Podcasts, literature, movies, music, etc.

Language

How to include trans/gender-nonbinary people in conversations in your country’s language(s)

  • “Sotaque Mineiro” is fast and they chop their words in half… in queer settings it can be hard to understand

  • Queer call to your sisters “Eaeeeeeeeeeee” *high pitched*

Race & Ethnicity

Religion & Spirituality

Like all our resources, our Brazil resources were recommended by Fulbrighters in the host country. Because of the vast and thorough resource collection the Brazil cohort of 2018-19 provided, we have copied their recommendations nearly verbatim. Please contact us if you have updated information.

Please contact us if you’d like to speak to the ETA who wrote this page.