Agnes Torres Hernández, or Agnés Torres (born 1983, Tehuacán – d. 10 March 2012,

Atlixco Atlixco () is a city and a municipality in the Mexican state of Puebla. It is a regional industrial and commercial center but economically it is much better known for its production of ornamental plants and cut flowers. The city was founded early i ...

) was a Mexican psychologist, researcher, and

transgender A transgender (often abbreviated as trans) person is someone whose gender identity or gender expression does not correspond with their sex assigned at birth. Many transgender people experience dysphoria, which they seek to alleviate through ...

activist. Torres advocated for the legal recognition of transgender people in Mexico, and was murdered for her work on 10 March 2012. After her death, the

Puebla Puebla ( en, colony, settlement), officially Free and Sovereign State of Puebla ( es, Estado Libre y Soberano de Puebla), is one of the 32 states which comprise the Federal Entities of Mexico. It is divided into 217 municipalities and its cap ...

state congress incorporated " hate crime" into the Civil Defense Code for crimes made on the basis of gender or sexual orientation.

Education

Agnes Torres Hernández completed her

psychology Psychology is the scientific study of mind and behavior. Psychology includes the study of conscious and unconscious phenomena, including feelings and thoughts. It is an academic discipline of immense scope, crossing the boundaries betwe ...

degree with honors in 2001 at

Veracruz University Veracruz (), formally Veracruz de Ignacio de la Llave (), officially the Free and Sovereign State of Veracruz de Ignacio de la Llave ( es, Estado Libre y Soberano de Veracruz de Ignacio de la Llave), is one of the 31 states which, along with Me ...

. However, she was unable to actually receive her degree because it was issued under her

deadname Deadnaming is the act of referring to a transgender or non-binary person by a name they used prior to transitioning, such as their birth name. Deadnaming may be unintentional, or a deliberate attempt to deny, mock or invalidate a person's gend ...

and not under the name Agnes. In May 2014, Veracruz University issued Torres her degree ''post mortem'' in recognition of her social and activist work.

Activism

Torres advocated for the right to rectify birth certificates and collaborated with Humana Nación Trans to seek respect and recognition for transgender persons at the national level. She also worked with the Democracy and Sexuality Network (DEMYSEX) and Erósfera. In 2010, Torres filed a complaint against

Javier López Zavala Javier López Zavala (born 9 January 1969) is a Mexican politician affiliated with the Institutional Revolutionary Party, PRI. As of 2013 he served as Deputy of the LXII Legislature of the Mexican Congress representing Puebla. He was arrested o ...

, then the

PRI PRI may refer to: Entertainment and media * '' Performance Racing Industry'', a magazine * PRI Records, in Los Angeles, US * Public Radio International, Minneapolis, US Measurements and codes * Perceptual Reasoning Index, in the WAIS-IV intelli ...

candidate for the governorship of

, to the National Council to Prevent Discrimination over derogatory remarks López made in an electoral debate regarding transgender identity.

Murder

According to reports from the Attorney General of the State of

, Torres's body was found in a ravine Siglo XXI highway on 10 March 2012, showing signs of torture. Because of the violence evidently carried out upon her, Torres's murder was classified as a hate crime on the basis of

transphobia Transphobia is a collection of ideas and phenomena that encompass a range of negative attitudes, feelings, or actions towards transgender people or transness in general. Transphobia can include fear, aversion, hatred, violence or anger tow ...

. The Attorney General of Puebla arrested four suspects in connection to Torres's murder, while fifth remained a fugitive. Three years after her murder, in March 2015, no one had been charged for Torres's murder.

Citations

{{DEFAULTSORT:Torres Hernandez, Agnes 1983 births 2012 deaths LGBT rights activists from Mexico LGBT people from Mexico Transgender women Violence against trans women Mexican psychologists Mexican women psychologists People murdered in Mexico Universidad Veracruzana alumni People from Tehuacán 21st-century LGBT people