Intersecting Research, Suffering, and Resistance: narratives from dissident genders and sexualities in (de)constructing trans care networks in Rio de Janeiro

Abstract

This paper examines the factors that contribute to suffering among trans people and travestis, with a particular focus on the role of sex work in marginalisation, resistance and agency. Two ethnographic studies were conducted in Rio de Janeiro in 2020 and 2023. The first study examined the material from a "trans care network in (dis)construction" and the life stories of four trans women and travesti. The second study, based on participant observation, interviews and conversation circles, involved sex workers, activists, health professionals and NGOs. The data collected in the two studies was then integrated by the authors, whose results were then intersected to identify common elements and themes, resulting in four categories: itineraries of vulnerability, sex work, knowledge situated in health services and itineraries of intersections. The research indicates that the suffering experienced by trans women and travesti can be conceptualised as a form of ‘intersection suffering’, generated at the intersection of paths of vulnerability and intersections, which challenge binarisms. It also shows that self-care practices and the formal (in)networks of solidarity established by these individuals play a crucial role in their lives, emphasising the role of situated knowledge in care settings.

Keywords:
Trans women; Sex work; Collective Health; Decolonial Feminism; Resistance