Insights
Together We Honor the Legacy of Ymania Brown: Fa’afafine Leader and Global LGBTIQ Advocate
Region(s)
TOPIC(s)
Type
Commentary
Author(s)
Publish Date
September 16, 2025
Share
It is with deep sadness that we honor the extraordinary life and legacy of Ymania Brown, a friend, colleague, and fearless advocate for the rights of LGBTIQ people around the world. Ymania’s impact on the global movement for equality was profound, and her passion, dedication, and generosity inspired all who had the privilege of knowing her.
Born in Samoa and identifying, in her own words, as a ”proud Fa’afafine woman of colour,” Ymania championed gender diversity across the Pacific Islands and beyond.
She carried Pacific voices to global stages, from UN forums to international advocacy networks, ensuring that indigenous identities, persons of color, and trans and gender-diverse experiences were heard and respected worldwide.
Ymania also led with strength and compassion on the global stage, serving as co-Secretary General of ILGA World and, most recently, as the Executive Director of TGEU, amongst many other appointments. Her work helped shape international policies, amplify activist voices, and open doors for those too often left behind.
Her sudden passing leaves a profound void in the communities she championed and the lives she touched. Ymania’s legacy will live on in the work she so passionately advanced and in the countless people inspired by her courage and compassion.
Our thoughts are with her family, loved ones, and all who mourn this loss.
Quote from Maria Sjödin
Ymania was a most generous friend, a trusted sounding board, and a source of positive energy. Her wisdom, kindness, and humor made any challenge easier to face, and I will truly miss her voice in our global movement.
Quote from André du Plessis
Ymania was Co Secretary General of ILGA World when I served as its Executive Director. I knew her before then as a Samoan activist learning the ways of the UN through her country’s UPR, and after that as a loyal friend and colleague who loved going to the top of Swiss mountains with me. She mentored and inspired me (and on more than one occasion, completely terrified me!). So many people around the world have been impacted by her. She led as an empathetic mother figure and confidant to many, a visionary spokesperson who insisted the world see LGBTI people as equal human beings, a legal whizz and NGO policy-nerd on countless committees, and all while simultaneously boldly calling out the hypocrisy, injustices, and falsehoods that divide and hurt, whether inside the LGBTI movement or out. She was committed to the ideal that our global LGBTI movement should stick firm to its values and remain united across different geographies, bodies, politics, and identities. Living out all this in my own work is the best way I can honour her monumental legacy. The world is a better place because of what she did. And we will miss her.
Take Action
When you support our research, you support a growing global movement and celebrate LGBTIQ lives everywhere.
Donate Now