“ MY LIFE IS TOO DARK TO SEE THE LIGHT”
A Survey of the Living Conditions of Transgender
Female Sex Workers in Beijing and Shanghai
Glossary
Executive Summary
1
Summary Recommendations to the Chinese Goverment
4
Methodology
5
I. Background
7
What Does ‘Transgender’ Mean?
7
Transgender Persons, Sex Work, and HIV/AIDS
8
Perceptions of Transgender People in China
11
Transgender Persons in Traditional Chinese Culture
12
II. Findings
19
Gender Identity
19
Family Relationships
21
Discrimination
24
Engagement in Sex Work
28
Health
40
Programming Response
49
III. Legal Framework
52
Legal Recognition in China
52
International Framework
57
IV. Conclusions and Recommentations
61
Recommendations to the Chinese Government
65
Recommendations to International Donors
67
Acknowledgements
68
About the Researchers
69
Annex 1: Demographic Breakdown of Interviewees
70
Annex 2: Management Standards for Gender Reassignment Surgery
71
I