“Not Ideal Uncles”: Unveiling Childhood Sexual Victimization and Hidden Identity Struggles of GBTQI+ Youth in Sex Work in Botswana

Objective: Globally, growing attention has been directed toward the sexual health and developmental experiences of gay, bisexual, transgender, queer, and intersex (GBTQI+) youth. Existing literature links childhood sexual victimization, familial rejection, bullying, and gender nonconformity to adverse sexual health outcomes. Evidence further suggests that sexual and gender minority youth are often targeted for abuse before they self-identify based on perceived gender nonconformity; yet, despite these insights, little is known about these dynamics in Botswana. This study applies an intersectional and sexual health lens to examine how early victimization shapes later sexual vulnerability among GBTQI+ individuals involved in sex work. Methods: This article draws on findings from a larger qualitative study on male sex work in Botswana. Data from 15 purposively sampled participants who self-identified as a gay person or bisexual were analyzed to explore childhood experiences, pathways into sex work, and subsequent sexual health risks and victimization. Findings: Participants reported patterns of vulnerability across the life course, including childhood sexual abuse, bullying, and familial rejection, often occurring prior to conscious sexual identity formation, linked to gender nonconformity. These experiences contributed to increasing reliance on sex work as a survival strategy. Within sex work, however, participants experienced continued sexual and physical violence, limited power to negotiate safer sex, and heightened exposure to sexual health risks, all of which are reinforced by cultural norms that stigmatize nonconforming masculinities. Conclusion: The findings demonstrate that sexual health vulnerabilities among GBTQI+ individuals in Botswana are cumulative and structurally produced, beginning in childhood and extending into adulthood through constrained pathways into sex work. Early victimization, identity disruption, and economic exclusion intersect to shape sexual risk and harm. Policy implications: Sexual health interventions should adopt trauma-informed and rights-based approaches that address early childhood victimization, family- and school-based stigma, and access to sexual health services and justice for GBTQI+ individuals.