Did you know that on 29 January is celebrated the National Trans Visibility Day in Brazil?

January 29 is celebrated the National Day of Trans Visibility in Brazil. The date was created to promote reflections on the citizenship of transvestites, transsexuals (trans men and women), and non-binary people, that is, people who do not recognize themselves as either men or women.

That's what we're going to talk about in this article, so get ready for a journey of knowledge and deconstruction. Are you ready? Just come!

After all, what is gender identity?

It is common for people to confuse the topics of Gender Identity and Sexual Orientation, but let's go in parts:

1. Gender identity is how someone recognises themselves;
2. Sexual orientation is who you are attracted to, affectively and sexually.

Transgender people and opportunities in the labour market

This is a central theme in building a more inclusive and diverse society. Diversity in the workplace is necessary and beneficial.

In Brazil, the insertion of trans people in the labour market is still in its infancy, there is a lot to do, but the good news is that several companies have already realized the importance of encouraging affirmative actions for the creation of more plural and inclusive spaces.

At this very moment, there are several initiatives underway. One of them is TransEmpregos, one of the oldest employability projects for transgender people in the country. Currently, the organization has the largest database and CVs of this segment in Brazil.

How can the labour market contribute to the inclusion of transgender people?

The creation of actions in favour of inclusion is fundamental, as you may have already realised that we live in a country of continental dimensions, where opportunities do not always reach everyone.

But of course companies can help to change this scenario and give the famous "right close". Here are some examples of good practices that can be adopted.

• Creating campaigns for trans employees to join companies in order to promote a diverse and inclusive environment;
• Celebrate dates such as LGBT Pride and Trans Visibility Day at work;
• Promote affinity groups, conversation circles and educational actions;
• Affirmative recruitment programmes;
• Creation of internal campaigns focused on diversity agendas;

This journey is long, but extremely important! So, although not everyone is at the same stage, it is essential that everyone contributes to building a lighter and more inclusive work environment, okay?

Diversity and inclusion at Levva: Chris' story

In the Trans Visibility month, Chris, chose to share with us his story, the main challenges and how was his process of insertion in the labour market, especially here in levva.

Christopher de Oliveira Alexandre, or Chris as we call him in everyday life, is 25 years old with a technical degree in Systems Development from the Technical College of Campinas (Unicamp), lives in Campinas with his family and is part of the NEWBIE training programme.

Chris joined the company through NEWBIE, a developer training programme focused on people new to the field and wanting to boost their knowledge or people in career transition waiting for their first IT job opportunity.

When she received feedback from the selection process for the training programme she was extremely happy and explained how that moment felt.

"Joining Levva opened my eyes to the world, it was the first company where I felt welcome. It's an area I enjoy working in, for me this is the best thing I could be doing.

Unfortunately, for trans people, the work space is not always a welcoming and respectful environment. It is fundamental to remember that respect, visibility, inclusion, dignity, autonomy and equality start with the name a person is called and its respective pronoun.

"I was surprised when they called me, because from the beginning everything was very amazing, the care from the creation of the email with my social name and also the use of pronouns."

Like most trans people, Chris had to go through a process of discovery, of realising his own identity. He told us a bit about how it started.

"From a very young age I've always had a discomfort with my female identity, I've never been comfortable in dress, deep down I've always known who I was and am."

Still about this time, he explains when this process was potentiated in his life and when a turn of the key in search of his gender identity definitely happened.

"As soon as I hit puberty, I started to realise that I was not the same as other girls, I always had the urge to hide my breasts. Even before I met trans people, I already felt that I wanted to make some modifications to my body."

As you've noticed, Chris's challenges started very early, even as a toddler he was already uncomfortable with traditional school activities like the classic Festa Junina. By the time he graduated from high school, he took an important step towards his transition.

"When I finished high school, I felt I needed to go to a psychologist because I felt there was something different about me. I went through medical treatment for almost 3 years until I started the process of hormonisation."

Trans Visibility Day

Talking about Trans Visibility implies hearing the stories of those who know these experiences like no one else, so we share in this content a bit of Chris' life and his main challenges.

Talking about Trans Visibility implies hearing the stories of those who know these experiences like no one else, so we share in this content a bit of Chris' life and his main challenges.

And to close in style, we leave 3 tips for you not to #closeerrado!

Respect gender identity - Respect the social name, this is how the person wants to be called and this is not something to be discussed, just respected. Don't create unpleasant and disrespectful situations. After all, you don't call Anitta Larissa or refer to Fernanda Montenegro as Arlete, right?

Use the pronoun correctly - Never use the pronoun incorrectly, if you are a trans woman, surely you should use the pronouns "she/he", if you are a trans man, use "he/him". Are you in doubt about which pronoun to use? Just ask!

Develop active listening - It is important that trans people feel comfortable in social spaces, that is, it is important to listen to the demands and needs of this community, so be open to construction and deconstruction.