Well after midnight on a recent chilly weekend, long stretches of Sunset and Santa Monica boulevards were lined with scantily dressed people lingering on sidewalks, wading through traffic, waving at cars.
Some were men, some were women, and some were people who have taken on the dress and identity of the opposite sex, often with the aid of surgery or hormones.
To Los Angeles police, the growing amount of prostitution by male-to-female transgenders in Hollywood "is pretty obvious. It's not some imaginary thing we have made up," said vice Sgt. Emalee Baptiste.
Indeed, transgender advocates acknowledge that prostitution is a major problem in their community. That, however, doesn't justify getting picked on, they add.
More than most people, transgender residents say, they are likely to be stopped because of how they look, even if they have broken no law and are only going to the numerous clubs and bars in the area.
"They stop me even when I am not dressed up," complained a transgender who identified herself only as Nikki. "I can just be wearing sweat clothes and going to the store."
That, community leaders add, constitutes misconduct by police: profiling.
The hot-button issue of selective enforcement based on stereotypes is driving a welter of reforms in law enforcement agencies across the country, including the LAPD. But the controversy in Hollywood suggests that profiling allegations can mask a variety of more nuanced and complex interactions between authorities and a group whose members feel singled out.
"There is a perception that all transgenders are going to face harassment, that they are going to be considered prostitutes," said Shirley Bushnell, a transgender advocate.
To a large degree, transgenders' complaints are based on fuzzy questions of respect, education and mutual understanding that are hard to track or quantify. The conflict is one in which cultural differences and minor slights between two vastly different groups play out daily on the streets of the city.
One study cited by Maria Roman, a transgender outreach worker for the nonprofit community service group Bienestar, found that 50% of those living in the Hollywood area were involved in the illegal sex trade.
But transgender advocates say that even when police stop them legitimately, they are likely to be asked disrespectful questions, such as why they feel a need to dress in women's clothing, or whether their breasts are real.
