Citation

Campbell H. Crit. Anthropol. 2007; 27(3): 261-283.

Copyright

(Copyright © 2007, SAGE Publishing)

DOI

10.1177/0308275X07080356

PMID

unavailable

Abstract

■ Recent anthropological studies have emphasized power, domination and hegemony. The US—Mexico border is a key site for ethnographic research on such issues. This article uses an ethnographic approach to examine cross-border sexual encounters in the Ciudad Juárez/El Paso area. Through a study of Anglo/Mexican sexual interactions and the blurred boundaries between the cross-border marriage market and sex tourism, I explore the cultural dimensions of attraction and seduction within the contexts of unequal power relations. This approach moves beyond moralistic reductionism and one-dimensional views of power relations and inequality in order to provide a richer perspective on cross-cultural sexual encounters.