Festival celebrates Mexican gay and transgender community

Описание: (22 Nov 2013) It's a festival celebration, Muxe-style.
Here in the southern Mexican city of Juchitan de Zaragoza, indigenous gay men, transvestite and transgender people - known as "muxes" - are staging a festival in celebration of their community.
Wearing brightly coloured costumes and performing traditional dances, the muxes are parading through the streets of the city - led by their queen Cristian Sanchez - before attending a mass for the muxe community at a local church.
"You are born with this, you're born with a little spark of homosexuality, but I have lived very happily with my homosexuality, very happily, up to now I have been living very happily," says Cristian Sanchez.
Here in Oaxaca, muxes often work as home helpers, embroiderers, decorators, cooks and entertainers and are often seen as a blessing by their family.
According to anthropological studies, some women in Juchitan de Zaragoza encourage their sons' muxe leanings because they tend to stay home and care for their parents rather than leaving the family to get married.
"In the experience of the families having homosexual members, for them, is a blessing, it creates a kind of luck in their lives. These people offer a lot of skills, so their families don't have a cultural conflict," says Lucio Santiago, a Catholic Priest.
Once communion is over, the festival celebration continues with Sanchez crowned as queen at the ceremony.
Here in Mexico, the concept of muxes has broadened over time with there now being muxes who either aren't indigenous Zapotecs or who usually dress in men's clothing, only putting on traditional costumes for celebrations such as this.


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