Serving Others: The Relationship Between Missionaries and Sex Workers at the Border

Abstract

The U.S.-Mexico border region is more than a geographical space. The border has been an area of negotiation, a place of encounters and interaction that involves communication, intense movement of people, and socio-cultural interactions that converge in this peculiar space. Written by Sarah Luna, Love in the Drug War (2020) compiles face-to-face interviews, pictures, and fi eld research. The purpose of this work is to present a broad and in-depth understanding of the lives of sex workers in the border town of Reynosa, Mexico. It o ff ers insights into the “ love and obligation that inspired peoples ’ journey to the border town ” (3). Luna focuses her research on the prostitution zone known as Boystown. “ Love and obligation ” (3) are what connect the stories of the area ’ s inhabitants. The main characters are sex workers and American missionaries whose journeys are paradoxically linked to service. Furthermore, Luna ’ s work builds upon research on current issues such as migration, mobility, drug cartels, and other topics pertinent to the border region. The book is organized in a way that develops and connects the testimonies collected by Luna. The background research is linked to two di ff erent main groups of migrants. On the one hand, we have the missionaries that come from all over the United States to the border region seeking to help sex workers by delivering God ’ s word to them. On the other hand, we have the sex workers who are mostly migrants from central and southern Mexico. In a way, both missionaries and sex workers are migrants to Boystown, and they are connected by their mission to serve others.