“They kicked me out of my house, I started working on the street”: intersectionality and occupational apartheid in sex work. A case study

Abstract

Introduction Women who have engaged in sex work have been a stigmatized, marginalized, and socially alienated community. Particularly, in the case of trans women, there is a bigger percentage of violence. Objective To analyze the life story of a trans woman who works in sex work, based on an intersectional and occupational analysis. Method We used a qualitative study based on the Life History research technique, considering elements of the occupational narrative interview. Results From her history, we can see that there are elements that have intersected throughout her life, such as the domains: structural, disciplinary, hegemonic, and interpersonal. And that her occupational choices have been strongly influenced by her context within occupational apartheid, seeking to generate spaces of resistance and agency in the face of different adversities. Conclusions These situations make her living conditions precarious and alert the influences of economic, political, and heteronormative systems, among others, in determining people's lives.