Tchinda Andrade: Cape Verde's transgender hero (see photos & Video)
At the center of preparations is
Tchinda Andrade, a firebrand for the island's trans community and one of
the first to come out in Sao Vicente back in 1998. So influential is
she that "tchinda" has become an term used to describe trans people on
the island.
mediaafricana.blogspot.com In film "Tchindas", directors Marc Serena and Pablo Garcia Perez de Lara traveled to Sao Vicente to explore the lives of the transsexual community in the city of Mindelo in the run up to its annual carnival.
The transgender community make up
only a portion of the carnival's throng, but their input can also be
felt elsewhere. Andrade brings together local children to perform at the
carnival, and her lieutenants Elvis and Edinha help with the costumes
for myriad performers.
Though considered by some to be
Africa's most LGBT-friendly nation, the respect shown towards the
transgender community has been hard fought. Serena says that Andrade has
been assaulted in the past, and transgender people have limited
protection in the eyes of the law.
!["This is a poor country, but it's full of love and joy," says Serena. The island is small, only 88 square miles, which perhaps breeds a environment of inclusivity. "You have to get together and live together," he says. "[Vicentians] are forced to embrace each other and understand one another."](http://i2.cdn.turner.com/cnnnext/dam/assets/160630182042-tchindas-6-small-169.jpg)
"This is a poor country, but it's
full of love and joy," says Serena. The island is small, only 88 square
miles, which perhaps breeds a environment of inclusivity. "You have to
get together and live together," he says. "[Vicentians] are forced to
embrace each other and understand one another."
Serena and de Lara premiered
"Tchindas" in 2015. It won the Grand Jury Award at Outfest, was
nominated for an Africa Movie Academy Award and screened at the New York
African Film Festival earlier this year.
It was the popular singer
Cesaria Evora who first introduced journalist Marc Serena to Cape
Verde's most famous transgender activist: Tchinda Andrade.
The Sao Vincente native came out as
transgender in a local newspaper article in 1998, and has since played
the role of mother hen to the country's trans community.
"She was the first to open the way for others to express themselves," says Serena. "Tchinda
is a natural leader." So influential has she been that the trans
community in Cape Verde are referred to as "tchindas" by locals.
The love she inspires is evident in a documentary co-directed by Serena and Pablo Garcia Perez de Lara last year called "Tchindas," which follows Andrade's preparations for one of the biggest annual events on the Cape Verde calendar: carnival.
The film has been sweeping up on the festival circuit. It won the Grand Jury Award at Outfest, was nominated for an Africa Movie Academy Award and screened at the New York African Film Festival earlier this year. Moreover, it's made a star of its protagonist.
click to see video (Tchindas Trailer)
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