Learning from gender-diverse thriving among third-gender people in Juchitán, Mexico

In the Zapotec culture of Oaxaca (southern Mexico), muxe individuals are people assigned male at birth who describe themselves as a third gender sharing some characteristics of both men and women. While some studies find that they encounter discrimination, muxe individuals also report being valued, respected, and supported given their traditionally recognized third gender status and role within their culture, community and family. The city of Juchitán is the center of this indigenous culture and provides an excellent setting to study factors that combat stigma and give space for gender-diverse thriving with implications for transgender health and well-being.

This study explores how acceptance around gender and sexual identity development and having a valued social role may promote resilience among muxe individuals and why matters for HIV/STIs prevention and overall health.

On three occasions, in 2004, 2013, and 2023, we collected ethnographic data, including survey data from 38 self-identified muxe individuals.

Our findings include information about demographic characteristics, gender identity, family acceptance, social acceptance, sexual experiences, relationships, involvement in sex work, and health status, including HIV/STI risk and status. Findings show that while muxe individuals report some gender-based discrimination, they also report a fair amount of cultural acceptance - including an accepted family, community, and social role - which has positive impacts on them in terms of health and wellbeing.

We envision this research as a baseline exploration upon which to build ongoing scholarly work in the area of gender diversity and transgender health. It is our hope that a deeper understanding of the muxe culture will advance approaches that learn from diverse cultural understandings of gender and underscore strength-based frames.