Sex work within emerging Latino immigrant communities: a typology

Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

Abstract

Little is known about the organisation and types of sex work emerging urban Latino immigrant communities. To develop a typology of the local sex work industry, we conducted 39 in-depth interviews with foreign-born and US-born Latina female sex workers, Latino immigrant clients, and key informants such as bartenders and brothel managers in Baltimore, Maryland, USA. Interview transcripts were coded through an iterative process, and descriptions of sex work were grouped into types. Three types of direct sex work (the street, houses that operate as brothels, and weekend brothels operating out of hotels), three types of indirect sex work (bar workers, opportunistic, and as-needed), and one type that could be either direct or indirect (individual arrangements) were identified. Understanding the local sex industry and its variability has implications for developing and implementing programmes and interventions tailored to the context of sex work type in order to reduce HIV transmission.

Original languageEnglish (US)
Pages (from-to)374-390
Number of pages17
JournalCulture, Health and Sexuality
Volume24
Issue number3
DOIs
StatePublished - 2022

Keywords

  • Female sex work
  • HIV
  • Latino
  • immigration

ASJC Scopus subject areas

  • Health(social science)
  • Public Health, Environmental and Occupational Health

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