She's turning him into a girl.
That was the title of an article in Marie Claire magazine this past March. (I couldn't find the actual article online, but I can bring in the magazine for anyone who wants to read it; it's quite interesting.) It's not an exaggeration either. In Juchitan, Mexico daughters bring more value to their families than sons do. It's basically the opposite of China where they believe boys are more valuable because they will carry on the family name; whereas girls will just leave the family and live with their husbands family. In Mexico, muxes (the third gender, men transformed into women) very seldom live with lovers but instead stay home and take care of their mothers. Muxes (which is translated to literally mean gay men) do more than take care of their mothers though.
"Muxes work harder than men, and we're more curious an dentrepreneurial than women," says Estrella (a muxe from Juchitan). "We are known for our artistic talent. People seek us out- they like to have their dresses made by muxes."
Muxes normally hold more lucrative jobs than either man or women in this part of Mexico. Because of the economic advantages, women actually encourage their sons to become part of the third gender.
I was very surprised by this article. It is weird to think how much this helps their economy and that that is one of the main reasons so many men agree to making such drastic lifestyle changes. I can't imagine our culture encouraging men to become women to help our economic status. In the article it discusses typical jobs for men, women, and muxes and muxes tend to make about three times what women make in just a month. When other families with several sons see how much income families with muxes bring in, they realize how helpful it would be if one of their sons became a muxe as well. In Juchitan, muxes have basically taken over the design industry in recent years and it shows in their salaries. They are the supporters for their families. It was very interesting to read what these men will do to improve their family's status. Let me know if you want to read the article. :)
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3 comments:
so...not going to lie, I don't understand why it is that these muxes are mor productive than men. They ahve the same perosnalities, so how can this change anything. What I also don't understand is why it would be that they can afford to give these kids a sex change and yet they are doing this so that they have a more productive child to bring in more money.. wouldn't htis sex change cost more money than the positive increase in income?
That is SO interesting! Never even heard of it. i'd love a copy of the article if you still have it. More to torture students with later... :)
Keri - I'm not sure that they're actually undergoing sex change surgery - it seemed more like they were treating the boys like girls and encouraging their femininity to come out - kinda like that case where the boys' penis was cut off during a routine circumcision and the doc told the parents they needed to raise him as a girl.
'Course, that didn't work. But - with the info there (without reading the article), it would seem that they are to take care of the aging parents and "hold more lucrative jobs".
Very interesting. :)
This is weird! I just posted an article about how hard it is for women in a man's workplace and this is the exact opposite. It's like men are hitting a glass ceiling in this town!
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