Voicing Vulnerable Bodies Living on the Edges: The Autoethnography of a Transnational Mariposa - Paperback

by Juan A. Ríos Vega (Author)

Panama has been considered one of the most developed countries in Latin America. With high skylines and a modern metro system, this Central American country hides a true reality when we explore it in a deeper level. Like many other marginalized groups, LGBT communities in Panama have been invisible and ignored by the State. Incidents related to homophobia, transphobia, and hate crime have been taken for granted for many years. Instead, LGBT individuals have been blamed for behaving against social and sometimes religious norms. This book answers the researcher's questions: (1) How can I use my transnational mariposa consciousness to document my lived experiences as a maricón in Panama? (2) What does it mean to be a gay man in Panama nowadays? (3) How do trans women's experiences with a hostile society shape their everyday existence?

Author Biography

Juan A. Ríos Vega, Ph.D., Bradley University, is Associate Professor in the Department of Education, Counseling, and Leadership. He has published books, book chapters, and peer reviewed journals on K-16 Latinx education studies within the United States. Also, he has published extensively in Spanish on LGBTQ issues in Panama.