UC San Diego

The overall goal of this study is to describe the context of migration and sex work along the Mexico-Guatemala border, highlighting its complexities and nuances. The specific goals of this research are to identify and analyze the consequences of the implementation of immigration policies and sex work regulations for Central American sex workers living in the Mexico-Guatemala border, and to address public policy implications and further actions that can be done to improve migrant sex workers' lives in this region based on a qualitative analysis of ethnographic fieldwork and in-depth interviews. Diverse migration journeys, immigration officers' arbitrary practices and sex work entry as a consequence of structural factors were the main consequences of immigration policy implementation. Information, experience, and age were the main elements that determine these factors. Positive and negative impacts of owning a health card, subjective police role and sex work venue's characteristics were the main themes analyzed as consequences of sex work regulations implementation. Workshops about migrant's rights within the sex work context, sex trafficking awareness in the origin and destination place; sex work venue's regulations and fighting stigma and discrimination could improve female sex workers' health and safety in this region