This paper questions assumptions and conclusions in the recent scientific literature on Latin American sexuality written by US and European anthropologists. Specifically, it questions why transgendered Brazilians are depicted as key to understanding cultural and sexual differences between North and South America. Current claims are contrasted with earlier sexual science, including writings by a Brazilian criminologist/anthropologist and ethnographic material collected by the author. The discussion includes critical questioning of the contemporary AIDS industry, disciplinary homophobia and other institutional contexts that shaped this recent sexual science. Which histories and contexts explain how the most incredible stories were once seen as objective, true and disinterested?
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