Making a living? Strategies adopted by transvestite sex workers in a city of southeast Brazil

Abstract

This article examines strategies adopted by transvestite sex workers on the streets of Montes Claros, Minas Gerais, Brazil. The field work involved semi-structured interviews with two professionals on relevant aspects of their daily work. The discussion of the empirical material was based on the content analysis and included the dialogue with studies on violence against sex workers in Brazil and other countries. The results showed that the strategies adopted by the professionals interviewed have the double objective of increasing the income obtained from work, and reducing the exposure to the risks of violence in that activity. However, in many circumstances narrated by them, these options are self-excluding. The professionals revealed to consider a hierarchy of risks, and – at the end – they decide to take the risk perceived as the less harmful. Consistent with the literature, the behaviors reported – although relevant – are insufficient to reduce their exposure to risks of violence at work.