As much as their way of life is tolerated - are these people looked at through the lens of autonomy and dignity given to straight people? Not quite. Tolerance of ‘kathoey’ is statistically greater in cities like Bangkok than in the rural areas of the country. Is there a ‘kathoey’ individual living on a farm in rural Thailand, reading this right now, who has suffered brutality for not being straight, who wants to punch me for saying ‘kathoey’ are pretty much tolerated? Probably.īut, we need to speak in generalities based on data. Are ‘kathoey’ tolerated in Thai society? Pretty much. Where to begin? An amazing “Bad Girl Rih Rih” impersonation! Really enjoyed the show in Chiang Mai!

Courtesy: Shutterstock Are They Accepted in Thailand?īuckle up because as much as other blogs might want you to believe that the answer to this is simple…it’s just not. For example, if you call a person ‘kathoey,’ they might take it as you calling them trans when really they’re gay. This might make the term insulting to a member of the Thai LGBTQ+ community. In fact, in some circles, it’s used a bit lazily to describe anyone with queer tendencies. The actual proper term for this group of individuals is ‘kathoey.’ But, this definitely can be used in a pejorative or demeaning sense as well. The phrase is a western invention that came about as a result of Westerners not being able to wrap their minds around Thailand’s numerous and multi-faceted concepts of gender and gender roles. However, “lady boys” is really a bit of a slur. “Lady boys,” as they are commonly referred to, is an umbrella term for transgender women and gay or effeminate men in Thailand. Sign up now and feel good about it! Who Are the Lady Boys of Thailand? Would you like to help support The March of Dimes? For the months of September and October, I am donating a dollar to every new subscriber to my monthly newsletter.

My amateur kathoey