At home, "na pista", or at school is too much "babado": spaces of sociability of young travestis

Abstract

This research aims to identify, analyze and discuss the possibilities of access to social facilities and the network of relations that permeate the lives of young travestis ("she-males") in Sao Carlos (SP). The justification is based on the understanding that the processes of transvestitity ("travestilidade") are marked by the experiences of stigma and prejudice, since the transvestites puts into question, among other standards, the binary system of gender (masculine/feminine) and sexuality (heterosexual/homosexual). The main objective is to discuss, taking the perspectives of these young people, their relationships with educational institutions, as well those that are created around the needs and possibilities of integration, both within the family and in prostitution. This, while it can be perceived as an insult to situations of social vulnerability, it also presents a possibility of support, whether financial or with respect to sociability and sharing of experiences. Using the oral history of the subject, accessed through immersion in the territory and the daily lives of young transvestites, and as their support theoretical and methodological assumptions of the Social Occupational Therapy, it is hoped that this study contributes to the better understanding of the contemporary transvestitities and also to discuss issues involving the brazilian youth, in its various aspects. (AU)