Congree Paper Abstract

Social Acceptance: Transgender in Britain and in Thailand

ANNE BEAUMONT-VERNON, DEPARTMENT OF SOCIOLOGY, UNIVERSITY OF ESSEX, COLCHESTER CO4 3SQ

This paper is part of a wider research project involving a cross-cultural comparative analysis of the transitioning process of male-to-female transsexual women in Britain and Ladyboys (known as kathoey) in Thailand.

In Britain, the transsexual person typically faces, at best ridicule, at worst verbal and/or physical abuse. The mental, emotional and physical wellbeing of transsexual people in Britain is affected by their experiences of the social stigma that often accompanies this condition. This has significant implications which impact on their social and personal lives.

In Thailand, kathoey are transgendered males who can be found in all walks of life and occupations throughout the country, but are heavily represented in the sex industry. Still a developing country, Thailand’s sex tourism provides a lucrative resource and a much-needed boost to the country’s economy. Although some kathoey have enjoyed the privilege and benefits of education, the many who have not often find work in the sex industry as an alternative career to lesser-paid menial work, and yet enjoy at least a tacit social acceptance. Drawing upon recent fieldwork in Thailand, this paper examines the strikingly different attitudes and responses to the Western transsexual woman, between Thais and Western Tourists.

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