In the context of China's growing HIV epidemic, men who have sex with men (MSM) have become a population of special interest and male sex work has emerged as an area of particular concern. Dominant narratives about men who sell sex to men in China from Chinese gay communities, health workers, and the general population have variably framed them as rural-to-urban migrants, questioned the authenticity or appropriateness of their homosexuality, and emphasized their role in driving the spread of HIV and other sexually transmitted infections among MSM and to the broader population. Despite the quasi-legal and socially stigmatized status of sex work, changes in labor and economic policies and the broadening visibility of gay entertainment scenes have seemed to open up more spaces for the evolution of male-male commercial sex. / From 2007 to 2009 I conducted multi-sited ethnographic fieldwork in China. My fieldwork activities included semi-structured life history interviews with men who sell sex to men and individuals connected with the male sex industry, extensive observation in the spaces of male sex work, migrant labor markets and organizations involved in HIV-prevention among MSM, and historical inquiry into the evolution of the male sex industry. / I find that the existing framings of male prostitution in China do not adequately incorporate consideration of the social and economic processes that are shaping male sex work and men's participation in this industry. I argue that male sex work is more accurately seen by the men themselves as a job, whether temporary or professional, which for some offers the opportunity to engage in China's emerging urban gay communities and express sexual identity; and for others requires the inconvenience of (unwanted) sex in a process---not of survival in absolute terms---but of urban advancement and participation in modern, cosmopolitan China. I argue that the current growth and structure of the Chinese male commercial sex industry cannot be understood separately from its historical development, emergent issues surrounding gay or tongzhi identity formation and expression---including negotiating HIV/AIDS---and struggles for economic success within China's post-socialist market economy. I show how accounting for these connections and broadening the public health focus beyond government sponsored efforts on HIV-testing and education provides a more inclusive view of subpopulations of male sex workers.
| Identifer | oai:union.ndltd.org:CHENGCHI/U0003483288 |
| Creators | Muessig, Kathryn E. |
| Publisher | The Johns Hopkins University. |
| Source Sets | National Chengchi University Libraries |
| Detected Language | English |
| Type | text |
| Rights | Copyright © nccu library on behalf of the copyright holders |
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