by Melissa Gira Grant

“Laxmi and I met at the International AIDS Conference in Mexico City, August 2008 — we were both there collaborating with the Global Network of Sex Work Projects in a pre-conference strategy meeting for sex workers. On the last day of some intense organizing, we hid out in her hotel room and I asked her a few questions about hijra culture, transgender sex worker advocacy, and the work she does in Mumbai around HIV/AIDS & human rights.”