Gender-affirming surgery under military dictatorship paved the way for better rights today
Waldirene Nogueira was 26 when she sought gender-affirming surgery in Brazil. It was 1971, the middle of Brazil’s military dictatorship, and plastic surgeon Roberto Farina performed the first-of-its-kind procedure in Oswaldo Cruz Hospital in São Paulo.
Soon after, Farina was sentenced to two years in prison for “grievous bodily harm”. Nogueira unsuccessfully battled her case in courts to change her name and gender descriptors in official documentation, which had previously forced her to use her “dead name” (meaning her name prior to transitioning) for decades. In 1976, she was sent to the Forensic Medical Institute where she was photographed naked and subjected to an invasive gynaecological examination.
Finally, at the age of 65, Nogueira was granted the dignity to change her legal name in her birth certificate and on her national ID card. Her battle for recognition paved the way for trans healthcare in Brazil: since 2018, trans Brazilians can change their names directly in the registry office, without documentation from psychiatrists or judicial orders as previously required.
Froio on the selection:
Can you imagine how scary it was for Nogueira to be a trans pioneer in a country where the military government openly declared LGBTQIA+ people a threat? Nogueira’s bravery and resilience mean that today, trans people in Brazil have an easier time advocating for themselves and their transitioning bodies. Her story is important and more people need to know about it.
Original article published in Portuguese as “Quem foi Waldirene Nogueira, a pioneira da redesignação sexual no Brasil” by Anne Meire Ribeiro and Malu Lucena on 15 June, 2026 for AzMina, by Anne Meire Ribeiro and Malu Lucena.
