The labyrinths of trans women: family and religion

Abstract

This paper reflects on some labyrinths that trans women from the province of Santiago del Estero-Argentina go through when building an unconventional identity within a patriarchal society. This article is part and product of a long qualitative research process that began with the development process of the master's thesis, then with the doctorate, where an ethnographic approach focused on the life trajectories of women was worked on. For this, a brief characterization of the group that is part of this work is made. Likewise, there will be a description of how traditional families operate in the face of diverse identities and the influence of religion on them. The labyrinths are not linear, nor do they have a single entrance and exit, they are complexities that trans women live through and through which they learn different strategies to navigate them.

In this context, many times trans women are expelled, rejected and discriminated against by their families, they are forced to leave home and, in some cases, migrate to other provinces in search of the anonymity that a big city could offer to the time to build their identity and enter prostitution as the only means of survival. On the other hand, religion exerts a strong influence on the family model to follow and on the roles that men and women must fulfill within it.