Kissing is an act of resistance

Laughing is an act of resistance - and so is kissing: in today’s episode of the telenovela “Salve-se Quem Puder” (“Everyone For Themselves” - literally “Everyone Who Can, Save Themselves”), Globo will air the first kiss on Brazilian TV between a trans man and a cis woman. Quoting Hypeness:

The drama will go down in history when it shows what will be the first kiss between a trans man and a cis woman on Brazilian television. The scene involves Catatau (Bernardo de Assis) and Renatinha (Juliana Alves), who evolved from being “friends with benefits” into a more serious relationship. …  Bernardo de Assis is 26 years old and started his gender transition five years ago. He told the newspaper Extra that he lost close family ties after coming out as a trans man, but that he was embraced by friends.

The actor emphasized to Extra the representation of the characters portrayed by a black woman, Juliana Alves, and a trans man. “It’s a symbolic couple. When Renatinha accepts Catatau for the world, she’s not just saying ‘I’m with him,’ but also ‘it doesn’t matter what you think, we are going to live out our affection,’” Bernardo said.

Or as he told the Folha de S. Paulo: “It’s in a context that represents a lot more than a kiss. It’s not just a gratuitous kiss, a romantic kiss. It’s an act of resistance.”

* “Friends with benefits” in Portuguese is “amizade colorida,” literally “colorful friendship.”