E-Paper
Who is Alice Correia Barbosa, the trans woman ICE arrested and plans to deport?
ICE arrested trans Brazilian Alice Correia Barbosa, sparking backlash over misgendering and deportation. Brazil’s officials demand her rights be protected.
The Department of Homeland Security on Wednesday said it plans to deport a transgender Brazilian woman who US Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents arrested in Silver Spring, as reported by Washington Blade.
Who is Alice Correia Barbosa?
A video posted to Instagram shows three plain-clothed ICE agents taking Alice Correia Barbosa from her car on Aug. 23. One agent misgendered Correia before the agents placed her into an unmarked SUV.
A senior DHS official, when asked by the Washington Blade about the arrest, referred to Correia by her birth name and described her as an “illegal alien from Brazil” who “overstayed his visa by almost six years.” The official also used male pronouns.
Also Read: Where is Yeonsoo Go? South Korean student released from ICE detention facility after huge outcry
“He remained in the US after his B-2 tourist visa that allowed him to remain in the US for six months. Nearly six years later, he is still illegally in our country,” the official said. “Barbosa’s criminal history includes arrests possession of a controlled substance and marijuana possession. US Border Patrol arrested Barbosa on Aug. 23, 2025, and he will remain in ICE custody pending removal proceedings. President Trump and Secretary Noem are committed to restoring integrity to the visa program and ensuring it is not abused to allow aliens a permanent one-way ticket to remain in the US.”
The Blade asked the official why they used Correia’s birth name and male pronouns.
“Because he is a man,” said the official.
On Aug. 24, Brazilian congresswoman Erika Hilton, who is a Black travesti, said she asked the country’s Foreign Ministry to “intercede to guarantee the rights and physical integrity of Alice Correia Barbosa, a Brazilian trans woman who was arbitrarily, suspiciously, and violently arrested in the US”
Hilton said on X that the arrest is unconstitutional and criticized the Trump-Vance administration’s immigration policy.
“Obviously, I don’t believe it’s fruitful to explain to the US the illegalities committed by a Dorito-colored dictator’s little project,” said Hilton.
Brazil’s Foreign Affairs Ministry told the Blade on Wednesday that the Consulate General in D.C. “is monitoring the case, in contact with local authorities, and providing consular assistance to the Brazilian national.” Correia is being held in ICE custody at the Caroline Detention Facility in Virginia.
ALSO READ| ICE Has Fined Immigrants $6 Billion. Now It’s Coming to Collect.
Brazil has the highest number of reported murders of trans people in the world. The State Department’s 2024 human rights report that “erased” LGBTQ people does not mention this.
President Donald Trump say on genders
President Donald Trump in his inaugural speech said the government’s “official policy” is “there are only two genders, male and female.” Earlier this year, Hilton and another Brazilian congresswoman, Duda Salabert, who is trans, said the US listed their gender on their visas as “male.”
