Women protest gender-based violence across Brazil following shocking cases

RIO DE JANEIRO (AP) — Tens of thousands of women in cities across Brazil rallied against gender-based violence Sunday as a record number of female victims and a series of recent high-profile cases have shocked the country.

Women of all ages and some men took to the streets in Rio de Janeiro, Sao Paulo and other cities, calling for an end to femicide, rape and misogyny and for men to join them in their struggle.

Alline de Souza Pedrotti’s sister, who was an administrative worker in a school in Rio de Janeiro, was killed on Nov. 28 by a male colleague along with another employee.

Pedrotti, who was at the demonstration on the boardwalk in Copacabana, said the person who killed her sister didn’t accept having female bosses.

“I’m devastated,” she told The Associated Press. “But I’m fighting through the pain and I won’t stop. I want changes in the legislation and new protocols to prevent this kind of crime from happening again.”

In another shocking case, Taynara Souza Santos was run over by her ex-boyfriend and trapped by car, which dragged her over concrete for one kilometer (0.6 mile). The 31-year-old’s injuries were so severe her legs were amputated. Video footage of the Nov. 28 incident in Sao Paulo went viral.

And on Nov. 21, in the southern city of Florianopolis, English teacher Catarina Kasten was raped and strangled to death on a trail next to a beach on her way to a swimming lesson.

These recent cases were “the final straw,” said Isabela Pontes, who was on Sao Paulo's Paulista Avenue. “I have suffered many forms of abuses, and today I am here to show our voice.”

More than one in three women in Brazil was a victim of sexual or gender-based violence over the course of a year, according to a 2025 report by the think tank Brazilian Forum on Public Safety, the highest number since records began in 2017.

A decade ago, Brazil passed a law recognizing the crime of femicide defined as the death of a woman in the domestic sphere or as resulting from contempt for women.

Last year, 1,492 women were victims of femicide, the highest number since the law was introduced in 2015, according to the Brazilian Forum on Public Safety.

“We’re seeing an increase in numbers but also in the intensity and cruelty of violence,” said Juliana Martins, an expert in gender-based violence and institutional relations manager at the Brazilian Forum on Public Safety.

More women are speaking out against violence targeting them and have gained visibility in the public sphere, Martins said.

“Social transformations seeking equality of rights and representation generate violent responses aimed at reaffirming women’s subordination,” she said.

On Sunday, demonstrators in Rio put out dozens of black crosses, while others bore stickers with messages such as “machismo kills” and wore green scarfs associated with the demand for access to abortion.

Evelyn Lucy da Luz, a 44-year-old children’s educator, said she was a victim of an attempted femicide 10 years ago. “I almost died, but I didn’t.”

Lizete de Paula, 79, said men who hate women had felt empowered during the term of former President Jair Bolsonaro, who dismantled public policies aimed at strengthening women’s rights.

"Women are increasingly entering new spaces and macho men can’t stand this,” the former architect said.

Joao Pedro Cordão, a 45-year-old father of three daughters, said men have a duty to stand with women by calling out misogyny not only at protests but in day-to-day life.

“Only then will we be able to put an end to - or at least reduce - the current violence against women,” he said.

Thiago Mostazo in Sao Paulo contributed.

Women protest femicide following a series of high-profile cases in the country, on Copacabana beach, Rio de Janeiro, Sunday, Dec. 7, 2025. (AP Photo/Silvia Izquierdo)

A demonstrator holds up a sign that reads in Portuguese, "Enough! Enough of machismo," during a march against femicide following a series of high-profile cases in the country, in Sao Paulo, Sunday, Dec. 7, 2025. (AP Photo/Ettore Chiereguini)

A demonstrator shows the word "Enough" written on her arm in Portuguese, during a march against femicide following a series of high-profile cases in the country, in Sao Paulo, Sunday, Dec. 7, 2025. (AP Photo/Ettore Chiereguini)

Women protest femicide following a series of high-profile cases in the country, on Copacabana beach, Rio de Janeiro, Sunday, Dec. 7, 2025. (AP Photo/Silvia Izquierdo)

Demonstrators take parte in a march against femicide following a series of high-profile cases in the country, in Sao Paulo, Sunday, Dec. 7, 2025. (AP Photo/Ettore Chiereguini)

DENVER (AP) — A Frontier Airlines plane hit and killed a pedestrian on the runway of the Denver International Airport during takeoff, airport authorities said, sparking an engine fire and forcing passengers to evacuate.

The plane, on route from Denver to Los Angeles International Airport, “reported striking a pedestrian during takeoff at DEN at approximately 11:19 p.m. on Friday," the airport's official X account wrote.

A spokesperson for the airport said the pedestrian, who jumped a perimeter fence, has died. They said the unidentified person was hit two minutes after entering the airport. The person is not believed to be an airport employee.

“We're stopping on the runway,” the pilot tells the control tower according to the site ATC.com. “We just hit somebody. We have an engine fire.”

The pilot tells the air traffic controller they have “231 souls” on board and that an “individual was walking across the runway.”

The air traffic controller responds that they are “rolling the trucks now" before the pilot tells the tower they “have smoke in the aircraft. We are going to evacuate on the runway.”

Frontier Airlines said in a statement flight 4345 was the one involved in the collision and that “smoke was reported in the cabin and the pilots aborted takeoff.” It was not clear whether the smoke was linked to the crash with the pedestrian.

“The Airbus A321 was carrying 224 passengers and seven crew members,” the airline said. “We are investigating this incident and gathering more information in coordination with the airport and other safety authorities.”

Passengers were then evacuated via slides and the emergency crew bused them to the terminal. The airport spokesperson said 12 passengers suffered minor injuries and five were taken to local hospitals.

Denver Airport said the National Transportation Safety Board had been notified and that runway 17L, where the incident took place, will remain closed while an investigation is conducted. It is expected to open later today.

The pedestrian death came a day after a Delta Air Lines employee was killed while on the job at the Orlando International Airport. In a statement, the airline said the employee was killed Thursday night without providing details of the incident nor the name of the employee.

“We are focused on extending our full support to family and taking care of our Orlando team during this difficult time,” the airline said. "We are working with local authorities as a full investigation gets underway to determine what occurred.”

FILE - A Frontier Airlines jetliner taxis down a runway for take off from Denver International airport on Nov. 25, 2025, in Denver. (AP Photo/David Zalubowski, File)