Latino Truck Driver Trade: Sex and HIV in Central America

Latino Truck Driver Trade: Sex and HIV in Central America

Haworth Hispanic/Latino Press, 10 Alice St., Binghamton, NY 13904-1580. 226p., bibliog., index. ISBN 0-7890-0882-3, 0-7890-0883-1pbk. $49.95, $24.95pbk.
Jacobo Schifter. 2001.

This book discusses the macho sexual culture of Central American truck drivers. The book covers two topics. The first is a demonstration "that machismo is a discourse, not a sexual culture that treats women as inferior and dependent beings, but one that does not manage to impose itself without resistance." The second aspect that is discussed is that of the risk of HIV infection. "As we attempt to prove in this book, the prevalence of unsafe sex among truckers, their lack of general knowledge about sexual disease transmittal, and the large number of sexual partners they have make them a high-risk group for the spread of the disease." The 14 chapters cover: "Theory of Machismo," "Methodology," "The Place of the Mushroom Dwellings," "The Rolling Bubble of Glass and Steel," "The Long Wait from Dawn to Dusk," "Sexual Discourses," "Sexual Culture and Truckers," "Bullying, or the Cult of Size," "Hypersexuality," "Obscenity and Intoxication," "Venereal Diseases and Condoms," "Prostitutes," "Prostitutes or Feminists," and "Homosexual Relations." This is an interesting and very revealing book that provides some insight on the sexual culture of Central American truck drivers. The stories are revealing and will naturally upset some readers. However, it reveals some aspects of the truckers life that had only been hearsay until now. A recommended book for all academic libraries.

Keywords: Sex in Central America; Truck Drivers; Sexual Behavior; Machismo; HIV Infections)
010510
BK011072

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