Jesús Ociel Baena Saucedo, a Non-Binary Magistrate from Mexico, Found Dead

Jesús Ociel Baena Saucedo, a magistrate and LGBTQ+ activist who was issued Mexico’s first non-binary passport earlier this year was found dead inside their home in Aguascalientes alongside another person.

Although there are no official reports about the incident, the San Diego Union-Tribune is reporting that there are “signs of violence with a knife at the home.”

Mexican journalist Adela Micha also posted on social media that Secretary of Security, Miguel Alonso García, confirmed the death of Saucedo and another person inside the home in the Punta del Cielo subdivision. It’s assumed the other person was their partner.

Many are alleging the motive behind the deaths is due to homophobia, making this a hate crime. “The death of Jesús Ociel Baena Saucedo seems very sad to me and among all the confusion, it is possible to experience indignation at the wave of homophobia and ridicule that is being spread on social networks,” one user wrote. “Our lives are not a joke, being visible in this country is still a danger.”

When Saucedo was issued their non-binary passport this past May, Foreign Minister Marcelo Ebrard called the occasion “a great leap for the freedom and dignity of people.”

Only two other Latin American countries, Argentina and Colombia, offer people non-binary passports. In the United States, an “X” is available as a gender option to choose when applying for a passport.

“The gender you select does not need to match the gender on your supporting documentation such as a birth certificate, previous passport, or state ID,” reads the instructions from the U.S. Department of State.

In 2021, the first nonbinary U.S. passport was issued to activist and U.S. Navy veteran Dana Zzyym, who filed a federal lawsuit in 2016. Zzyym lobbied for an “X” gender marker on U.S. passports with the State Department.