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Willy Wilkinson, MPH is an award-winning writer, public health consultant, and cultural competency trainer who has been advocating for marginalized populations since the early days of the HIV/AIDS pandemic. He is the author of the Lambda Literary Award-winning book Born on the Edge of Race and Gender: A Voice for Cultural Competency, which illuminates trans experience from a Chinese American and mixed heritage perspective, and transforms the memoir genre into a cultural competency tool. Over the past three decades, Willy has provided LGBTQ and trans-specific training for hundreds of community health organizations, educational institutions, and businesses.
Willy Wilkinson, MPH is an award-winning writer, public health consultant, and cultural competency trainer who has been advocating for marginalized populations since the early days of the HIV/AIDS pandemic. He is the author of the Lambda Literary Award-winning book Born on the Edge of Race and Gender: A Voice for Cultural Competency, which illuminates trans experience from a Chinese American and mixed heritage perspective, and transforms the memoir genre into a cultural competency tool.
Wayne Goodman in conversation with Willy Wilkinson, writer, public health consultant, expert in transgender issues, and LGBTQ activist
The transgender movement has come a long way in the last six decades, from very little visibility and support to growing awareness and acceptance. We speak with Willy Wilkinson, author of the Lambda Literary Award-winning book Born on the Edge of Race and Gender: A Voice for Cultural Competency, about his journey coming out as a young trans child in the early sixties. Now a sought-after public health consultant who helps organizations and institutions develop LGBTQ-affirming services and systems, Willy describes his work in the LGBTQ movement, the challenges he and other transmasculine people of color face, and the trans superpower he discovered as a father of three. Co-hosted by Rhiki Swinton and Paige Chung; audio edited by Gilbert Daniel Bwette.
Wayne Goodman in conversation with Willy Wilkinson, writer, public health consultant, expert in transgender issues, and LGBTQ activist
Willy Wilkinson is an award-winning, Asian American, transgender writer, public health consultant, cultural competency trainer, public speaker, and spoken word performer. He is the author of the book Born on the Edge of Race and Gender: A Voice for Cultural Competency, which transforms the memoir genre into a cultural competency tool. He is the recipient of a National Lesbian and Gay Journalists Association excellence in writing award, the Transgender Law Center Vanguard Award, and is recognized on the Trans 100. This poetic, journalistic memoir shines an intersectional beacon on the ambiguity and complexity of mixed heritage, transgender, and disability experience, and offers an intimate window into how current legislative and policy battles impact the lives of transgender people. A dynamic and engaging speaker Willy earned a master’s in public health in Community Health Education from UC Berkeley, and a BA in Women's Studies from UC Santa Cruz. He lives in Oakland, California with his three vibrant young children. Whether navigating the men's locker room like a "stealth trans Houdini," accessing lifesaving health care, or appreciating his son's recognition of him as a "transformer," he illustrates the unique, difficult, and sometimes comical experiences of transgender life.
Have you been to a workshop or conference lately and been asked what was your “preferred pronoun?” Conveners aren’t just being politically correct but acknowledging the diverse gender identities within our community. As more and more LGBTQ individuals come out and take their place at work, schools and in their communities, society is learning that the old rules simply just don’t apply anymore. Some even suggest a Gender neutrality - the idea that policies, language, and other social institutions should avoid distinguishing roles according to people's sex or gender, in order to avoid discrimination arising from the impression that there are social roles for which one gender is more suited than the other. Willy Wilkinson an award-winning Asian American transgender writer, public health consultant, cultural competency trainer, public speaker, and spoken word performer Willy Wilkinson. He is the author of the book Born on the Edge of Race and Gender: A Voice for Cultural Competency. We will talk about Wilkinson’s personal journey, explain cultural competency for those working in and with the LGBTQ community.
Transgender activist and writer Willy Wilkinson on his memoir "Born on the Edge of Race and Gender"