Gay couple strip naked in public to protest homophobia
The couple stripped off in the streets to protest against homophobia and discrimination against the LGBT community.
Felippe and Marlon – a young, gay Brazilian couple – stripped naked for the photo shoot in the middle of the streets of São Paulo, Brazil, to protest homophobia and to celebrate LGBT activism in the country.
Though homosexuality is not a crime in Brazil, it is notorious for having one of the highest murder rates for LGBT people – and transgender people in particular – in the world.
For the past few years, violent crimes have increased against the LGBT community, with murder rates remaining worryingly high.
The photographers of the shoot – Fabio Lamounier and Rodrigo Ladeira – said their goal was to create a simple metaphor: “Stripping naked strips away prejudices, and, in the process, opens hearts and imaginations.”
“Felippe and Marlon, carrying just the adrenaline and courage, had the idea of this photography,” Lamounier said.
“We have to be utopian and rethink a city naked of its prejudices, lovable even under the grey sky; complete just because of the differences, and respectful cause of the diversity.”
Jean Wylls – Brazil’s only openly gay legislator – has spoken out against the homophobia in the country, and shared plans to tackle abusive behaviour head on.
“We’re in a battle to create a law that protects gay and trans Brazilians and that severely punishes those that violate their rights,” he said.
“But Brazil is a very conservative company, and that conservatism has grown in the last few years, especially due to fundamentalist Christians that have become active in politics.”
Last year, an LGBT group launched a campaign website in the run up to the country’s general election, to promote awareness of candidates who publicly support gay rights.
Amid controversy from leading and fringe-party candidates expressing anti-gay views ahead of the national vote, the #VoteLGBT campaign published information online to help “spread and build LGBT interests in Brazil.”
You can see the very NSFW images here.
