NYC Trans Oral History Project

Dean Spade relates his journey and politicization first through the support of his mother in conservative Virginia, his first tastes of feminism and increasingly his work to provide support and resources through the Sylvia Rivera Law Project, advocating for transgender, intersex and gender non-conforming low income communites and people of color. Spade's story spans from Virginia and back and forth between New York and California. Working at a LGBTQ bookstore by day, promoting queer nightlife and involving himself in New York's community activism, Dean pursued law while developing a sharp sense of the limitations of institutional change. He shares both his personal experiences as well as grounding insights regarding the nature of social change, ending with a reflection on the current political climate. (Summary by Kirsten Adorian.)

Cecilia Gentili is the Director of Policy at Gay Men's Health Crisis (GMHC). In this wide-ranging interview, she reflects on the relationships and experiences that inform her story of struggle, resilience, and joy. Cecilia recounts her childhood and adolescence in Gálvez, Argentina, describing complex family dynamics and early experiences with gender nonconformity and transphobia. She also shares her memories of the military dictatorship, and the effects of this legacy of violence, trauma and fear on her own family and Argentine society. She chronicles later life in the city of Rosario, where she discovered a trans community as a student, sex worker and performer. Cecilia's journey also includes years in Miami and New York City facing addiction, homelessness, incarceration, and life under threat of deportation as an undocumented immigrant. Finally, she considers her professional success today as an organizer and advocate for the trans community and beyond. Summary by Justine Ambrose. Photo by Leah James.

Bianey Garcia is a community organizer at Make the Road New York, a non-profit organization providing services and advocacy for Latinx and working class communities. Born in Veracruz, Mexico and raised in Veracruz and Chiapas, Bianey describes the transphobic violence that forced her to relocate to Tijuana at 14 and subsequently New York City. Bianey recounts her initial experiences as an undocumented, trans woman of color in New York including finding trans community and the transphobic and racist policing that resulted in her incarceration at Rikers Island. Later, she describes her involvement with the Trans Immigrant Project and the first Trans Latina March, obtaining a green card, and her plans to revisit her family in Mexico for the first time in 12 years. (Summary by Micah Katz.)

After purchasing a house in Park Slope in the 1980's to be closer to her kids, Dr. Rusty Mae Moore and Chelsea Goodwin opened their home to homeless trans folk. Transy House, as it was called, aimed to be a place where trans people could feel safe from the objectification and harassment. To this day, the continue to live with other trans folks on Long Island, where they've discovered and forged new community affinities. In this interview Chelsea Goodwin speaks passionately of Goth and Pagan culture's relationship to Trans Community as being like "peanut butter and jelly". A seasoned activist, having worked with Act Up, Queer Nation and Dyke Action Machine, her piss-and-vinegar vibrancy emphasizes social change from the ground up, rather than legislative reform. Dr. Rusty Mae Moore came out in her 50's and through parenting, her career and travel to Brazil navigated the particularities of her own transition. Together they share their intimate understanding of Trans Liberation.

Julian Talamantez Brolaski uses language and xirs' own pronoun paradigm to come closer to words that best express xir identity; at one time utilizing "it" as xir pronoun and appreciating the leveling impact of recognizing a unity with all things. Seeking what would feel closer to "home" both conceptually and geographically, xe sought community in Santa Cruz, San Francisco, New Mexico and New York; pursuing poetry, Indigenous two-spirit communities, and country music along the way. (Summary by Kirsten Adorian.)

Born in NYC, Reneé Imperato, is a proud anti racist, pro union trans woman who has lived her life fighting for the rights of others. In this interview she shares her memories of growing up in New York including her childhood spent in Times Square, her friendship with Leslie Feinberg, and her memories of the legendary 220 club in New York City's West Village. Throughout the interview Reneé weaves in the struggle for trans rights with the Black Lives Matter movement and union organizing. (Summary by Ted Kerr.)

Paris shares her experience of growing up in Atlanta and starting to “live her truth” at a young age. She recalls finding reassurance in a community of other Black trans women for the first time and getting involved with parts of the Atlanta Black Queer and Trans scene. Professionally, Paris has spoken on panels about LGBT issues, worked as a music librarian at Morehouse College, and engaged in sex work. She currently works as a case manager at Housing Works in New York City. Paris weaves connections and highlights differences between her experiences and communities in Atlanta and in New York City. Throughout her accounts of journey and place, Paris shares about her own values regarding work ethics, relationships, gender roles, and activism. (Summary by EJ Coolidge.)

Phoenix Danger was active in the successful unionization campaign at Babeland, a NYC sex toy shop. In this interview, they recount their early life in suburban New York as the child of Filipino immigrants, facing social rejection in school and discovering an affirming online queer community. They relate their struggles in an abusive relationship during college, and their journey from estrangement to re-connection with their parents. Phoenix also chronicles the evolution of their non-binary trans identity, influenced by their relationships with various queer and trans communities as well as their own political engagement. They trace the steps of this political development, from their initial exposure to organizing as a college student through their participation in the campaign to establish a union at Babeland in New York City. They describe the worker grievances at Babeland, the process of building support for a union, the personal and community relationships.

Genevieve Tatum, a transgender woman, retells her experiences as an adolescent in The Village in New York City. She describes the aftermath of the Stonewall riot, the Civil Rights movement, and the Women's movement. Genevieve also reveals her journey in accepting her trans-identity; first as a cross-dresser, and eventually coming out as a non-operative transgender woman. She describes the pain, confusion, and denial she felt, but also the relief upon accepting her truth and sharing it with her loved ones. After coming out, Genevieve lent her experiences to the SAGE Transgenerational Theater Project, where is hoping to solidify the transgender community's place in LGBT history. (Summary by Ariana Blondo.)

Octavia Leona Kohner was active in the successful unionization campaign at Babeland, a NYC sex toy shop. Here, she recounts her upbringing in a working-class family in Staten Island, and describes social isolation, friendships, and sexual encounters during adolescence. She relates her experience coming out as a trans woman while attending Hunter College, and her struggle with depression. She also discusses her own political journey, participating in advocacy and activism during high school and college, listening and learning at Occupy Wall Street, and her affiliation with anarchism. She shares stories of organizing at Babeland, recounting workplace grievances, anti-union efforts by management, the bargaining process, and details of their first contract. She places the victory by Babeland workers in the context of the broader labor movement. (Summary by Justine Ambrose.)

Jamie Bauer recounts their childhood and adolescence growing up in New York City's Stuyvesant Town, resisting family pressure to conform to normative gender expressions and discovering butch femme culture in the Village. They discuss finding political and social community as a college student in Boston engaged in gay rights organizing, and, later, as part of Women's Pentagon Action in New York City. They chronicle their involvement in ACT UP, describing the group's culture and interpersonal dynamics, memorable direct actions, and shifts in its strategies and goals, as well as the broader political climate of the ‘80s and ‘90s. Jamie also details the evolution of their own non-binary transmasculine identity alongside the increased visibility of the transgender movement, and the complexities of negotiating their relationship with their longtime partner, choices related to their transition, and their queer identity. (Summary by Justine Ambrose.)

J. Soto recounts his evolving understanding of gender and identity along his eastward migration across the United States. Born and raised in the Bay Area, J. attended graduate school in Chicago, IL before moving to Brooklyn where he currently works as an artist who produces both written and performed works. J. describes the nuanced relationship he shares with his family, informed by their experience as working class, Catholic, Mormon and of Mexican descent. He also discusses the production of art work, the nature of community and family, and the role of language in understanding and describing identity. (Summary by Micah Katz.)

JD Davids, a writer, health activist, and communication strategist, recounts his experiences as a member of the Philadelphia HIV/AIDS activist movement and subsequent move to New York City. A Philadelphia resident until 2002, JD talks about how his time spent in anarchist collective housing led him to ACT UP Philadelphia and other direct action organizing for HIV/AIDS services. JD expands on the evolution of his gender identity and the scope of his activism as he organized and networked to found Project TEACH and Community HIV/AIDS Mobilization Project (CHAMP). He concludes by discussing his move to New York City and how his gender expression developed through illness, pregnancy, and parenthood and which communities he is active in today. (Summary by Micah Katz.)

Ei Meeker came to New York in the mid 1980's and got involved with ACT Up at the height of the AIDS crisis. He got involved with resource access for homeless LGBTQ and HIV+ people. He talks about his early brushes with feminism, activism in New York and San Francisco, the family support around gender he received growing up and his decision to become an educator. (Summary by Kirsten Adorian.)

El Roy Red is a poet who has lived in New York City for three years. Red begins the interview by discussing her self-expression through a unique sense of style and how she found her voice as a writer. They recount their global upbringing, including their earliest moments of trans awareness and their experiences living in Europe and small towns in the United States as a trans person of color. She also discusses the importance of healing, how she has learned to find the “microjoys” in life, and finding community in New York City. Red shares their creativity, their attention to nuance and human complexity, and their visions for brown, black, trans, and queer liberation. (Summary by Izzy Levy.)

Shannon Harrington is a wig master, hair chaser, and make-up artist who has been living in New York City for over 30 years. In this interview Miss Shannon provides meaningful and nuanced insight into the 1980s and 1990s world of drag in New York City, gained from years of being involved in nightlife, theater and moving image communities as performer and behind the scenes talent. Miss Shannon speaks about experiences with performer International Chrysis, working at Edelweiss and having a friendship and working relationship with Lee Brewster of Lee's Mardi Gras. (Summary by Ted Kerr.)

Fainan Lakha is a student at Columbia majoring in Comparative Literature and Society. She grew up in a Shia Imami Ismaili Muslim community in Seattle and became involved in the Oneness University associated with Tony Robbins before coming to New York and discovering philosophical materialism and Marxism. She is heavily active in current social movements and, in this interview, describes her vision of a trans politics that reaches beyond visibility. (summary by Boyda Johnstone.)

In this interview, Suneela Mubayi discusses their experiences as a genderqueer person who has traveled extensively throughout the Middle East while studying for their PhD in Arabic through Columbia University. They recount being raised by their grandmother in New Delhi, India, discovering their interest in languages and in Arabic, navigating airport travel while trans, and the interplay of language with gender and sexuality. (Summary by Jamie Magyar.)

Photo credit: Meredith Zinner Photography. // Topher Gross is a hairstylist and former nightlife personality, performer, and poet. A lifelong New Yorker, he describes his quiet upbringing in Canarsie and early feelings of masculinity. Beginning with his time at the College of Staten Island, he discovered lesbian and trans communities through the internet and, later, through Manhattan's lesbian nightlife scene in the late 90's and early 2000's. He describes his shifting relationships to (and the unstable nature of) these communities and spaces, as well as his experiences coming out and undergoing top surgery during a time of scarce medical and financial resources for trans people. (Summary by Jamie Magyar.)

In this short conversation, Lenni discusses their long, ongoing journey in exploring non-binary and "genderfucker" identity. They recount coming out as non-binary after many years in a "straight-passing" marriage, the importance of individuality and self-expression, and their experiences as co-founder of the TransGenerational Theatre Project. (Summary by Jamie Magyar.)

Zavé Martohardjono recounts growing up as a mixed race queer New Yorker. Having seen New York change over the past couple of decades, Zavé tells us about living in globally diverse neighborhoods, navigating New York City's competitive education system, finding solace and community in queer POC party scenes, working through racial and gender identity, the benefits of a queer workplace, and seeking out hormone treatment. (Summary by Evan Zavidow.)

Yanyi, a poet and software engineer, reflects on his experiences being part of and building many forms of community, including Asian American community, queer/trans community, and neighborhood communities. Born in China, he immigrated with his family to Canada (and then to the US) as a small child, and has lived in New York City for six years. Here, he talks through the many ways that, throughout his life, he has valued finding and creating communities and systems of support while developing his own sense of identity and dealing with the legacy of intergenerational trauma. (Summary by Jamie Magyar.)

Story sharers include: Katie Liederman, Diana Cage, Maxe Crandall, Chris Parker, Naomi Clark, Buffalo Trace, AJ Lewis, Zachary Scholl, Rebecca Novack, Joss Barton, Sarah Schulman / / Friends of prolific writer and performer Bryn Kelly come together to reflect on the legacy and lineage she left behind. Hear her editors and professors explain what it was like to work with somebody so insecure despite being more intelligent than themselves; her friends share memories over her love and talent for cooking, reading tarot, doing hair, and going out to Hey Queen! and other spots in Brooklyn; her loved ones recall supporting her through a particularly challenging hospitalization at Interfaith; and her peers at the Lambda Literary Retreat explore how the work she produced as The Hussy and Party Bottom will live on as some of the most important and validating literature surrounding life as an HIV-affected person. (Summary by Evan Zavidow.)

erformer, and activist Spree shares her experiences as a Radical Faerie; a member of ACT UP, The Emma Goldman Gypsy Players and The Eggplant Players; and a resident of numerous places around the world including IDA (Idyll Dandy Arts) and her current home of Sassafras. She recounts various AIDS actions she took part of in NYC with her friend activist Ortez Alderman; and touring Europe and the US with fellow performer and friend Maxine. The interview begins with her recalling her family, including her gay brother and unaccepting parents, and living in Georgia. (Summary by Theodore (ted) Kerr.)

In this interview, Sabelo Narasimhan--a South Asian youth activist, organizer, photographer, and immigrant of color--discusses his penchant for collecting and sharing stories. Hear him talk about what it was like moving from India to California and then New York, experiences with the NYPD, his childhood, travel, and supportive and loving family. (Summary by Evan Zavidow.)

Stella Dance is an educator, tarot-card reader, and professional dungeon monitor who currently works at the recently unionized Babeland sex toy boutique in New York City. In this interview they describe their experience dealing with bullying, physical disability, and mental illness while growing up in a working-class family around Park Slope in Brooklyn, and later attending college in the south. Their experience spans such topics as physical disability, schizophrenia, hospitalization, the play party scene in New York, relationships, economic and class struggles, and finding a community of support while grappling with a continually fluctuating gender identity. (Summary by Boyda Johnstone.)

Christian Appel grew up in New Rochelle, escaping to find community in New York's party scene (particularly the Motherfucker parties) and at IDA, a queer gardening farmstead in Tennessee. She draws strength and liberation from her partners and seeks healing for herself and her community through secular spiritualism, her job at SAGE and her recent work creating the TransGenerational Theatre Project. Appel's anarchism and community work informs her sense of both community empowerment and the particular ways she experiences her gender identity. Through her whimsy and critical perspectives, Christian and her interviewer Dinnick conclude that "Trans is magic!" (Summary by Kirsten Adorian.)

Eve Elle describes the development of her identity and experiences as a trans woman over time, from realizing her identity at a very young age, to dating before and after transitioning, to her thoughts about her future and the possibility of parenthood. Throughout, she touches on her family, her relationship with the arts community, and shifting attitudes towards trans people and trans representation. (Summary by Jamie Magyar.)

Anna Keyes discusses the textured and representational aspects of her films, her process of self realization and the embodiment of her womanhood through online community, her family and being out in the world; owning her process as well as recognizing the tension of "passing" as an ideal. Identifying puberty as a "process of coming into one's own humanity", Anna examines the experience of her second puberty as girlhood into womanhood. (Summary by Kirsten Adorian.)

In this brief interview, Brycen Gaines touches on a variety of topics, beginning with his first moment of awareness of his gender identity. He discusses discrimination, healthcare, family, and trans friends. He shares his frustration with the lack of LGBT community and resources in New Jersey outside of college campuses. Finally, Brycen talks about the importance of therapy to LGBT people and about his plans to become a therapist working primarily with the LGBT community. (Summary by Izzy Levy.)

Gykyira Shoy is the Program Director of New York Transgender Advocacy Group (NYTAG). Here, she describes her experience as a trans person of color and her work as an activist, engaged in justice struggles for all people. Beginning with her life in the South, she shares her experiences in the foster care and shelter system, her struggles with sickness, and the journey that brought her to New York City. This interview addresses many topics: female entertainers, the house scene, economic justice issues in the trans community, HIV prevention, youth work, advocacy, empowerment, and others. Gykyira gives a detailed look in to the work of NYTAG. Using her personal journey with activism as a lens, we learn about the many organizations and people working for trans justice today. (Summary by Rachel Parsons.)

In this interview, Sylver describes a childhood growing up in the Bronx and a period of awakening that began after they were kicked-out of their mother's home at 15. Sylver, having at times struggled with depression and alcohol dependence, describes the impact of finding their trans family and discovering activism through organizations such as Sylvia's Place, WRRQ, an artist collective, and an inter-generational theatre group. The arts and self-expression have also been central for Sylver, who connected with the New York ballroom and drag scenes early on and who now works with youth at a camp called Arts In the Woods. (Summary by Wendy Knight.)

Abigail Thomas, who identifies as non-binary trans-feminine, reflects upon their experiences of as growing up as a disabled child in New York City. Xie explores the circumstances that shaped their journal to transition, including sexual abuse. Now playing “catch up,” and finding a source of confidence and pride in their non-binary trans-feminine disabled identity, Abigail discusses the road to transition, disability pride and how to enjoy little successes such as figuring out how to apply makeup and laying in the sauna of the women's locker-room of LA Fitness.

Marty Hernandez Avedon discusses growing up in the foster care system only to be adopted by a family who rejected him at the age of 10, reconnecting with his biological parents, and what the name Hernandez Avedon means to him. A gender non-conforming tech worker, Marty explains the lack of diversity in programming and the steps he is taking—such as working with Access Code—to change that. (Summary by Evan Zavidow.)

In this interview Kyle Katz speaks about their childhood, growing up in Boston, coming to New York, and the role that timing, books and community have played in how they identify, and understand themselves. (Summary by Ted Kerr.)

Aiden Simon, a Brooklyn-based visual artist, details a life spent moving among different spaces both geographically and in terms of community. He discusses his experiences living in various cities in the US, seeing changes in queer and trans narratives over time, and the evolution of his artistic practice. Throughout, he expresses appreciation for the varied systems of support in his life, and for the increasing acceptance of gender variance in queer spaces, while also criticizing the rapid gentrification of New York City. (Summary by Jamie Magyar.)

Santos, a bassist and sex educator, shares the story of his life in New York City, from his strict upbringing in East New York in the 80's, to his introduction to the punk and hardcore scene in the 90's, and his experiences with manhood and trans community in the 2000's and beyond. He emphasizes the importance of pleasure, vulnerability, and respect in his relationships with others. In particular, he discusses navigating and discovering gay sexuality, his long-term romantic relationships, and seeking supportive community and acceptance. (Summary by Jamie Magyar.)

Slim discusses his experience of coming out to his family and navigating his parents' feelings about his identity while finding acceptance and support from his siblings, girlfriend and friends. Having grown up in an Egyptian Muslim community in Queens, he draws strength and resources from his varying identities. (Summary Kirsten Adorian.)

Tiffany Miles describes growing up in conservative, religious small-town Alabama, where she lived for the first thirty-two years of her life. She discusses her complicated relationships with family, the slow process of coming out to herself, and her deep love of science fiction, particularly Star Trek. After coming out as trans, she moved to New York City, where she has continued her transition, navigated unemployment and the shelter system as a trans woman, and begun to meet other trans people. (Summary by Jamie Magyar.)

Yana Calou spent much of their youth traveling around the world and eventually found a community in Utah, where they began advocating for LGBTQ rights. Later, Calou moved to NYC, where they worked on campaigns for the labor rights of retail workers, where many queer and trans people are employed. They talk much about hormones, gender reconstructive surgery, and the health insurance disparities. Calou discusses their work with Retail Action Project, and the Retail, Wholesale, and Department Store Union. (Summary by Courtney Arban.)

Allison Charde shares her experience "under the trans umbrella" while growing up on Long Island attending Purchase University and presently in Crown Heights, Brooklyn. Allison speaks about her relationship to the internet, queerness, whiteness and how they interact with her idea of community and identity. (Summary by Christine Buckley.)

Kai Pelton is a co-facilitator of the Trans-Generational Theatre Project, a community initiative in NYC for trans-folk. Here, the 21 y.o. New York City native describes their journey as a trans person of color from the perspective of a lifelong fine and performing artist who emphasizes natural expression. This interview takes you through Kai's coming-of-age transformation from an "awkward caterpillar" who is unsure of who they were to a "beautiful butterfly" who realizes their authentic self through emotional and energetic expression and gender fluidity. (Summary by Sydnee Novack.)

Nico Fuentes is a member leader in a current unionization campaign at the Pleasure Chest, a sex toy shop. Beginning with an account of growing up in a Mexican family in West Texas and Oklahoma, she goes on to describe her move to New York City to become involved with fashion. Eventually she found work in sex toy retail, where she came out as trans, politicized informed by Black Feminism, and eventually helped start the union drive at the Pleasure Chest in collaboration with the Retail, Warehouse, and Department Store Union (RWDSU). Nico reflects on how racist mistreatment spurred the campaign, and the role of queer and trans identities in retail.

Rye Young is the executive director of Third Wave Fund, a grantor engaging in “radical philanthropy” focused on funding organizing initiatives by young women and trans people of color. In this interview, Rye goes into depth on non-profit organizing, the contradictions of philanthropy as an industry, the evolution and difficulties faced by Third Wave. Rye also details their own personal history radicalizing and coming out as trans while a recovering Republican during the Bush administration. (Summary by Sydnee Novack.)

Dylan Kapit reflects on their experiences going to an all women high school, Barnard at Columbia University, in New York City, and coming out as a trans masculine person. They also discuss their life post-college as a special education teacher, and being trans among other straight teachers. Dylan discusses their work with All Sex and Ni Queer. (Summary by Kiah Brem-Frame.)

Ceyenne Doroshow shares her experience developing a supportive relationship with her family, enduring ignorance and discrimination, first meeting another transwoman, learning about hormones, and discovering Miss Major and others who she now calls her moms. Having grown up in a time there were so few out and proud transwomen in her life, Doroshow explains how she has seen the trans movement progress without neglecting the fact that her community is pushed out of housing, portrayed inaccurately in the media, and offered short term solutions if anything rather than sustainable employment opportunities and a chance to age with dignity. A longtime transadvocate and New Yorker, Doroshow offers a crucial account of her history in New York City. (Summary by Evan Zavidow.)

Amaree Jael recounts their life growing up in New York City as a transmasculine person of color. Beginning on 125th Street between 5th and Lennox, Amaree describes their early life in a changing neighborhood and an emotionally withholding biological family. They discuss school as a time of social discomfort and intellectual growth, learning the nuances of moving through the world as Black, queer, and trans. They spend time describing their needs from and contributions to community, whether it be in physical space or on social media, and how the various communities they have been involved in have fulfilled those needs or left them wanting. Touching on issues of representation, visibility, community, activism, and education, Amaree provides a young, Black, queer, trans voice born and raised in New York City. (Summary by Micah Katz.)

Lauren Simkin Berke describes their work as an illustrator, animator, artist, and zine creator based in Brooklyn, NY. They walk us through growing up in an unconventional primary school setting, finding community in an anti-oppression college drama troupe at Cornell University and the Art Students' League of New York, as well as their artistic inspirations and hobbies, reflecting on changes in trans and nonbinary identity and terminology over the last ten years. (Summary by Boyda Johnstone.)

Ky Platt is a mixed-race, transgender comedian and author. Originally from Hamilton, Ohio, Ky has been active in the NYC LGBTQ+ community since the 1990s. In this interview, Ky recounts his experiences of being raised in Southwestern Ohio as a mixed-race person who had identified as being queer since childhood, being a part of the LGBTQ+ community in the 1990s, the 9/11 terrorist attacks, his popular and acclaimed blog in the mid-2000s called “AskThisBlackWoman,” and being an active co-parent in a queer family. (Summary by Sydnee Novack.)

Grace Detrevarah was born in Detroit, Michigan to an automobile industry family and moved to New York City as a teenager. In this interview, she discusses running away and the drag queens and trans women who protected her, religion and spirituality, incarceration, attending NYU Tisch School of the Arts, "revolutionary girls" like herself, and transgender healthcare. She has written a book Grace: Transitions and Other Views, a Memoir. (Summery by Evie Zavidow.)

Elsie grew up middle class in the Midwest where the church was a big presence in her life. Though she encountered a progressiveness in various ways within the religious communities she was part of her in childhood, the fact that she was gender-questioning ultimately alienated her from the church. An important part of her socialization took place online, in the Myspace, DeviantArt, Twitch websites where she felt she had more control over interactions than IRL, especially if they became abusive due to her being a trans woman. Elsie speaks frankly about struggles that she has had both in school and her romantic history, as a sexual assault took its toll on both of those spheres in her life. She also talks briefly about her medical transition as a process that lead to her feeling more herself on estrogen than testosterone. Toward the end of the interview, Elsie connects her own empowerment and political development both to instances of police brutality that Black Lives Matter.