TransLash Zine Vol. 2: Holiday Survival Guide (2020)

zine

HOLIDAY

DECEMBER 2020 | VOLUME 2

SURVIVAL GuiDE

WE'RE BACK, bebes.

TransLash tells trans stories to save trans lives.

Deep into this pandemic life, we’re still making time to create and to envision The Future of Trans*. In 2020, trans people showed up and showed out in ways that fill our hearts with joy and hope. From legal victories at the SCOTUS level, to unprecedented trans and non-binary representation in political office, to nationwide #BlackTransLivesMatter actions, to the next wave of TGNC storytelling, and breakthroughs in intersex rights: we continue to affirm, celebrate, and defend our own lives. And we continue to fight back against transphobic legislation and violence, with the support of a growing network of allies.

There is still so much work to be done in 2021 and beyond, but we hope the second issue of our zine captures some of the healing magic from this past year and carries you through what can often be a tough holiday season for many of us. We’re excited to share some of the amazing writing & art you submitted for this issue, along with highlights from TransLash’s videos and podcast episodes, a Trans Business Directory, and more! Know that we see you, we hear you, and most importantly: #TransIsBeautiful. #BlackTransLivesMatter. *Watch The Future of Trans documentary here: translash.org/watch You can also watch it on YouTube: search for "TransLash, The Future of Trans'

COVER ILLUSTRATION ARTIST: 'MPJ THE EMPRESS' (2020) BY J. MACK IG: @JMACKENT | TWITTER: @JMACK_ENT

This 2nd is our zine !

TABLE OF CONTENTS We made this zine for those moments during the holidays when you need relief from the bullshit. `1̀-5. Poetry & Spoken Word: ‘Girls’ by Xoai Pham, 'I'm Tired’ by Mojo Disco, and ‘Root Bound’ by Jami Tosto 6-20. The Future of Trans: An Interview with Alok Vaid-Menon 21-27. Celebrating Trans Art: Jade Obrebski & J. Mack 28-29. TransLash Podcast with Imara Jones: Episode 1 Highlights 30-31. ‘Getting Through the Holidays (and life) During a Pandemic’ by Yannick Eike Mirko 32. Trans-Owned Business Directory: Holidays 2020 Edition 33-34. ‘Top 3 Trans Moments of 2020’ by Imara Jones, TransLash Founder & Producer 35. COVID-19 RESOURCES FOR TRANS / NON-BINARY / INTERSEX / TGNC COMMUNITIES 36. Wellness Tips with Xaria James 37. 'What Will My Children Call Me?' by Daniela Capistrano, POC Zine Project 38. TransLash Community Opportunities

'girls'

by Xoai Pham

Remember when she drifted along the surface of the ocean, hair like kelp reflecting the surface of the sun.

The whales extending their foreheads to graze her shoulder.

Her gaze rests on the gray cloud miles away, inching towards her Sāmoa. A few moments later, the sky opens with a hot downpour.

She submerges her brown head into the Pacific, becomes ocean.

Gives baby whales wet kisses.

Peels back layers of coastline to reveal the volcanic rock that whispers a secret: I'm not going anywhere. * She is alive. Lights flash bright red.

Then blue. What did she know about saving lives? She was someone's baby girl, pumpkin, angel, love dumpling, little one.

Here she is on Atlantic Ave., at the house with the fig tree that reminds her of Cameroon. The police car that she hijacked sits idly outside, the sirens no longer work.

She packs her powder pink duffel with playing cards, rope, a teddy bear named Raven, sour patch kids, castor oil, and a red canvas notebook.

She walks past the painting on the wall

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'girls'

by Xoai Pham of a full-circle rainbow glittering around a white sun.

Outside the door, is a family of maybe five hundred.

Their bellies so accustomed to the pain of uncontrollable laughter. * The best part about being a trans girl is keeping the world’s secret in your chest.

We are shards of seaglass.

You see yourself in us: Big and wide.

Spines long enough to play with purple clouds.

In the beginning there was us.

In the end, here we are. Here I am, made of the same stuff as my grandmother. And her grandmother.

And the mushrooms that sprouted before her.

Lift your head, close your eyes, do you hear yourself breathing?

Watch Xoai perform this piece during #LivesAtStake on the TransLash YouTube channel.

Xoài Phạm is a Vietnamese trans person who descends from a long legacy of warriors, healers, and shamans. Her life's work is in dreaming new futures where we are all limitless, and she makes those dreams a reality as a poet, essayist, editor, and collaborative educator.

Learn more about her work here: xoai.co.

Catch her on Instagram @xoai.pham and on Twitter @xoaiwrites.

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'I'M TIRED' by mojo disco

I couldn’t see this coming down my eyes, so I had to make the sax cry.

I couldn’t see this coming down my eyes, so I had to make the sax cry. I’m tired.

I’m tired of waking each day not knowing if it’s my last.

Shaving my face to make sure I pass. I’m tired of training my waist to give me a shape. I’m tired of tucking my love with the stickiest of tape. I’m tired of doing all these things to make sure I’m alive. I couldn’t see it come down my eyes, so I had to make the sax cry.

See I’m a fat Black trans woman. I’m not supposed to exist. With all of this body, these breasts, these hips. How dare she come outside and choose to just live.

Speak truth to power with gloss on her lips.

Being trans is a myth in a world full of cis, and no, I don’t mean sis like Ecogel and acrylic tips. I mean cisgender. It don’t matter where you land, either. ‘Cause the straights give me they hate but the gays give me their fever.

Yeah, we’re the alphabet gangsters. But I noticed that L, G, and B often align with the oppressor, to victimize the T. Now I don’t say it to be mean, and I don’t mean It to be cruel, but when Black trans women are being killed twice a month, what do you do? Do you memorialize our spirits, or do you hush your lips in shame? Do you misgender us in death so the families can’t be blamed? Do you tell our stories in a humanizing form, or do you touch yourself in private mode while watching TS porn?

See, unlike your tabs, trans folk can’t be closed, and no matter the resistance, our stories will be told.I had Marsha on my pen when I wrote this piece. I had Sylvia in my mind when I graced the page. Octavia on my lips when it’s time to speak. My mama in my movement when I burns my sage. Black trans women are here to stay!

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'I'M TIRED' by mojo disco

We have always been here, since the beginning of time. You can not kill the spirit when the soul is divine. You cannot make ugly a face so damn fine.

Does my sexiness upset you? Does it come as a surprise? That I dance like I have diamonds between my thighs?

See a black poet named Maya Angelou taught me to still rise.

So I will rise above this administration that is curating my demise. We need access to healthcare. We need access to safe spaces. We need employment opportunities. We need housing. We need people willing to stand up and educate the ignorant so the labor ain’t always on us.

We need the love of our families. We need lovers in the daytime, even if we don’t pass. We need not to be outed whenever you’re mad. We need our humanity, not to be reduced to sexual intercourse whenever we share our truth.

‘Cause at the end of the day, trans people don’t transition for you.

Watch Mojo Disco perform this piece during #LivesAtStake on the TransLash YouTube channel.

Mojo Disco is a multi-talented Personality, Curator, Designer, Poet, +Model, and Artist from NYC. She is the creator of the popular underground event Paint And Poetry, A NYFW show producer & runway coach, motivational speaker, writer, and teaching artist for the City of New York. Mojo is an activist for the Arts, Equality, and Love.

Follow mojo disco on twitter & ig at @mojodisco.

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'ROOT BOUND' by jami tosto

Tears shed for plans undone are rivulets, searching from the futures where they spring, a mirror of actions passed which will not pass away.

Our depths, riddling with trenches from murky bubbling pools of mind to bedrock of beating heart, polluted by these hyper-saline regrets.

Settling in our lungs, brine pools in which our fears appear reflected and we drown and choke on the ashes of bridges burned yet unbuilt.

Their freezing sorrows hiss and crackle against the heat of our fierce hearts, billowing steam, we hiss and burst with the pressure.

Like automatons we whir into action, driven to guard our chewy tender centers from scalding passion, numbing pain.

So acting we take shapes from our regrets, defined in negative space, forged blow for blow against foresight, living by response.

But taking form is giving function, which work always begets tooling, and makes us weep purpose.

Dear friend, we been laid low together, believe but, grateful epiphytes, our hearts, perilous beauties, will rise together.

Jami is a trans artist blacksmith, graphic artist, outdoor educator, and coder in rural northern Michigan committed to educating and elevating young womxn in traditionally male-dominated trades. She explores wild places with her incomparable partner, Casey, and their sweet pup, Yuka. Instagram: @fe.ironworks, Twitter: @foo_bbq.

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The Future of Trans

An Interview with Alok Vaid-Menon

The Future of Trans, a documentary produced by TransLash Media, premiered June 24, 2020. It explores trans futures with some of the brightest, sharpest, creative minds in trans and gender non-conforming communities including Chella Man, ALOK, Dominique Jackson, Angelica Ross, Toni-Michelle, Aria Sai’d, Isa Noyola, ALOK, Patricio Manuel, Shea Diamond, Fatima Jamal, and more. Here is the extended interview that took place with Alok Vaid-Menon.

Imara Jones: Today we are with ALOK at the Invisible Dog Art Center in Brooklyn, to talk about what a trans future looks like. I mean, for one thing, I think a trans future could look like my dress and your hair matching, which, that’s a really good future.

Alok Vaid-Menon: Right, totally.

Imara Jones: ALOK is a performance artist, a writer, a thinker, a fashion designer. So much so that I heard you say that all of your various identities, you’re in a polyamorous relationship with all of your identities, and are trying to figure out how to get them all along. So we are glad that you, and they, and them are all together with us today to have this conversation about what trans futures look like.

Alok Vaid-Menon: That was such a beautiful introduction.

Imara Jones: Thank you! Thank you, we try. So I want to really begin to have us engage in a conversation about what trans future looks like, because I think that at this moment of backlash, in this moment of actual oppression and violence, that it’s important for us to imagine and think about what we want the future to look like, what our role is in it, what possibilities are. Because so many of us, when we were growing up as trans and gender-nonconforming people, never had that opportunity. How we ended up is not what we imagined was possible. And so before we get to the future, I wanted to go back to the past a little bit and hear you talk about how you came to imagine yourself as you were, as the children of immigrants in Texas, right? Because in so many ways, if someone were to look at your birth, and the circumstances of your birth, who you are shouldn’t exist, but it does. What was the process even of you as a child imagining what your life could be like, and what your inner life could emerge into?

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The Future of Trans

An Interview with Alok Vaid-Menon

Alok Vaid-Menon: I think I quite literally gave birth to myself, because I think there’s this kinda emphasis right now on trying to have representation in media, and I understand where that desire comes from, but one of the good things about not being represented is you get permission to create your entire own journey and path. And so because I didn’t see anyone who looked like me at all, I had license to just basically scavenge hunt and make a collage. And so much of what I am is just a collage of disparate things that I had to assemble together to make a possible life. Because one of the perversities of growing up in an Indian household is even though there’s thousands of years of history of gender-variant people, in the diaspora, I was taught a very traditional, formal gender binary. And so I thought it was impossible. And the only kind of queerness that I thought was possible was always through whiteness. So at the beginning, there was already this war instilled in me between man and woman, but then also between the Western world and the Indian world. And I think creativity was the only place that I could go to escape from those kinds of false dichotomies and dualisms. So I started to write when I was 11 years old. And I just would literally listen to really tragic emo music (I still kinda do) and I would just cry, and just write in my journal. And I posted online with a pseudonym, which is such a trans moment of being able to find the most intimacy in a kind of anonymity. I would be online, under the name of Larry, which I don’t even understand where that was. I created an inner name club when I was in sixth grade, where we could choose our own names, then I chose Larry. So unambitious, but a marker of Texan times. And I just started to share my poetry online, which I didn’t understand was poetry, and people were like, “I feel the same thing.” And I think that taught me a lesson that I now hold really true in my art practice, which is the thing that we feel the most shame about, the thing that we feel is the most private, is actually shared by people all across the world.

Imara Jones: It’s the thing that humanizes us. And when I heard you say that, it was interesting. When did you realize inside of yourself, or begin to realize, that you were beyond what you were being taught that you could be?

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The Future of Trans

An Interview with Alok Vaid-Menon

Alok Vaid-Menon: I think that there were so many mini realizations. It was never this one kind of cataclysmic, cinematic, me ripping off the boy clothes, and running into... I think style was always a really helpful medium for me. Because as I’ve written about, I couldn’t consent to the sex that I was assigned. I couldn’t consent to the race that I was assigned. But style became a way to interrupt people’s gazes. So they would very much typecast me as, “Oh, you should be like this because you’re an Indian boy.” And so what I would do is just dress really weird, so I would dislocate that and they would be like, “I don’t--what’s going on with you?” And then in the suspension of that gaze, I finally had a moment to actually be like, “What am I? People are saying that I’m this, but now I have to ask myself, 'No, I am,’ fill in the blank.” And then I think that for me as an artist, what I continually return to is that unknowability, which is seen as a crisis in this country, and that’s the justification for so much militarism, the justification for so much security culture is fear of the unknown. Whereas as an artist, fear of the unknown is where I live. It’s where I hang out, it’s where I relax, It’s where I invite friends over, because the best art is when you don’t recognize that you made it. And for me, my own gender journey was an extension of my art making, where I didn’t have a conclusion of, “I’m going here,” it was just like, “Let me sense what makes me feel good.

Oh, it makes me feel good to start wearing dresses, I’m gonna do that. Oh, it doesn’t make me feel good to be called a man, I’m not gonna do that.” And then I just sort of ended up here. And it’s not for me that I’m like, “I know who I am definitively.” It’s more like, “I feel like this today.”

Imara Jones: And so it’s interesting… your creativity, and your artistry, and the ability to create a collage, moves at the same time as your gender journey. And they’re kind of walking together, building on each other, right? You put this stuff out in the world, and then once people responded, you do more of that, and it pulls you along as you go. So as you were going along, you were making the road, in a way. There wasn’t a sense of what you were building towards, as you were moving out into the world. When did you get a sense that you were doing that? I mean, we’re all in the process of becoming, but you found a way to find a visual, an actual language to express yourself. When did you have that realization that, “Wait, hold on, I’ve become something different”?

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The Future of Trans

An Interview with Alok Vaid-Menon

Alok Vaid-Menon: I think that was when I moved to New York City in 2013, that era of my life. Because I think I, for a long time, had a lot of imposter syndrome, because I was made to feel, as many are in this country, that to be an artist is to be a white cis man. Because to be an artist is to have the audacity to universalize your particular experiences. And I was told, “No, that’s just your experience as an,” insert identity, insert identity, insert identity. And there’s a way in which that reproduces our irrelevance, ’cause people will be like, “Oh, you’re just in the margins. You have nothing to contribute.” But what I actually learned is my marginality is mainstream, this distinction we need to resist. And it’s just that, actually, other people are allowed to speak for humanity, or abstraction, whereas we’re constantly supposed to be, minority, minority, but that actually minoritizes us. I think ideas of gender are not just about trans people, they’re about everyone. Ideas of race and not just about racialized people, they’re about everyone. Ideas of loneliness and trauma are not just about people who struggle with mental health, they’re about everyone. And so I think that that ability to be like, “What I have to say expands beyond the parameters of my identity,” only happened to me when I met people who gave me permission to do that. ‘Cause I think that for a lot of us in the communities that we’re a part of, we’re never given permission to create.

We’re given permission to critique, but we’re rarely ever given permission to create, because to create is to insist on another world. And I think that’s where I really am locating myself now, and especially as we’re thinking about future, is I think the best forms of criticism are the creation of worlds that are so irresistible that when people come to them, they’re like, “I’m never going back,” you know? I feel like what I’m really trying to do is to create the sensations; be that images, ideas, words, performances, that give a glimmer of what things could be. And I understand that work now to be vital and urgent, whereas previously, I was misled to believe that artistic work was kind of not the real thing, or the real struggle is policy change. And not that that stuff is not important. Obviously it’s really important. But I just, I think New York was the first time I could be part of a group of artists that were like, “Hey, actually, cultural change is a strategy unto itself.”

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The Future of Trans

An Interview with Alok Vaid-Menon

Imara Jones: Right, because to a certain degree, you can’t fight for something until you know what you’re fighting for. And so imagining what’s possible is essential to change. You can’t have it without it. So in this creation of a world that’s so irresistible, what is irresistible about the world that you want to create, that you want to live in? What are some of the things that that looks like, or what are the ideas that you’re playing with in that?

Alok Vaid-Menon: I think that us as trans folks are living that world right now, and I understand the harassment and violence that we experience as a response to that.

Yes, of course it’s about gender, but it’s also because we are living artfully in a world that requires a kind of conformity. And when people see us, they’re confronted, because they’re like, “I’ve lost my relationship with my creativity, and you had the ability to do the thing that I couldn’t do," which was emancipate yourself and say, "this is who I am." I think trans and TGNC folks, we know who we are, and a lot of other people in this world don’t know. They know what they’ve been told that they should be, but we had the audacity to say, “I know who I am.” And so what I’m speaking about is, it’s not that it’s the world I want, it’s the world that I’m living right now. And it’s a world that so many of us are living right now, and we’re being persecuted because of it.

Because to live in the kind of world I’m living is one of constant fluidity. Meaning tomorrow, I could be wearing what society perceives as "men’s clothes." The next day, I could be wearing what society perceives as "women’s clothes." I could decide that I’m shifting, and there’s fluidity in transformation. This world wants me to say, “This is my gender identity.” And the entire movement thus far has only been around people with a stable gender identity that can become a protected class of people for access to institutions. But what about those of us for who it’s in flux? What about those of us who, on a given day, experience harassment on this gender, and this gender, and this?

And people don’t want that because what I’m actually saying is, “I’m complicated.” In my world, we accept that people are complicated. In my world, we accept that people are in flux, and that homeostasis actually comes from a recognition of the infinite variability of the world, not from its being pinned down. And in my world, it’s one of profound vulnerability.

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The Future of Trans

An Interview with Alok Vaid-Menon

Alok Vaid-Menon: And I remember that the origin of vulnerability comes from vulna, which means wound, and vulnerability means willingness to be wounded. What that means for me is in my world, allyship is not just like, “I love you,” or, “You’re amazing,” or, “It’s fabulous.” It’s “I’m willing to be wounded alongside you.” And that means that we are exposing ourselves to pain, hurt, and trauma, but we’re doing it because we know that’s how we heal -- by actually encountering the wound, sitting with the wound, feeling the wound. And in the world we’re in (that we’re supposed to be in right now, but we’re not, ’cause we’re transported in this conversation), they tell us to just do everything we can to ignore the wound, to pretend it’s not there. That’s the history of this country. And in our world, and I see in so many trans worlds, we’re being insistent to be like, “I am hurt, and I am traumatized, but I’m working on it," and the way I work on it is through ceremony. And the ceremonies that I require are where people can actually understand me beyond visuality. In my world, we are energetic. I just think about the trauma of the visual, how so much of anti-trans violence is, “You look like.” And I’m like, “I contain so much more “than what I look like.” That’s always gonna be an approximation. But energetically and spiritually, I have entire ecosystems in me. Are you going to be committed to what you don’t see? In my world, we are just as committed to what we don’t see as what we do.

Imara Jones: So in many ways, it’s expanding the space for the world that you inhabit to be a larger space and a larger ecosystem that encompasses and pulls in other people. So it’s interesting, right? It’s very weird, but it’s actually to give space for other people’s liberation.

Alok Vaid-Menon: Right, totally. Yeah. A fundamental belief, I believe that my theory of liberation, as it currently is, ’cause it shifts whenever, is I don’t know what’s gonna work for everyone. And I don’t actually think it’s useful to say, “This is what’s gonna work for everyone.” But I know what’s working for me, so I’m gonna do what’s working for me, and my hope is that will give license and permission for other people to do what works for them.

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The Future of Trans

An Interview with Alok Vaid-Menon

Alok Vaid-Menon: The cis gaze will make us into like, “There’s one way to transition.

There’s one way to be real.” But with other TGNC folks, each person has their own gender. And we’re actually saying, “My womanhood is this, your womanhood is this, your nonbinaryhood is this.” We contain so many eons and so many ancestral traditions, it’s just said the way that we get read and spoken about by cis people is as a monolith. And I think that’s why I’ve always loved the plurality of gender-neutral pronouns, because there’s been this insistence of being like, “They are singular.” And I’m like, “Yeah, they kinda are.” But I like actually being in the space between singular and plural, because when I’m saying, “I am,” I’m saying “we are.”

Imara Jones: Right, it’s, it’s a world without erasure, all erasures. There’s no compromise. You don’t have to not be. And in the way that you exist, presently, there’s nothing about you in terms of how you’re feeling, what you want, what you’re thinking, that you cannot manifest.

Alok Vaid-Menon: Right.

Imara Jones: If you choose to– Alok Vaid-Menon: I just resolved to myself, for all of February, I was not gonna allow myself to have any small talk at all, with anyone. So if that’s just anyone on the street asking, “How are you?”, if that’s a store clerk being like, “Have a good day,” any opportunity I have to bring in intimacy, I’m going to. Because what I started to realize is, I physically cannot do that work of erasure. Because it just makes me depressed, because I know what the world could be if we were actually talking about the things that were going on. So we were just speaking about this before: I’m currently navigating a lot of pain in my family, a lot of illness, and death, and sadness.

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The Future of Trans

An Interview with Alok Vaid-Menon

Alok Vaid-Menon: And it’s just such a surreal experience to go from, “Okay, wow, we’re all crying together,” to, “Oh, have a great day!” Why should we have to do that?

Why can’t we bring that pain with us, and be like, “I am struggling.” And then the other person could be like, “Hey, I don’t have the capacity to deal with that struggle right now, but, I wish you the best.” Why can’t we get to that place where we’re honest with each other about our emotionality? And I think that that’s a trans politic for me, because I spent so much of my life having to suppress myself that when I came into myself, I’m never gonna suppress what I feel again.

Imara Jones: One of the things that you have spoken and written about, is the amount of violence that you experience on a day-to-day basis. One of the things that occurs to me as you talk is that a part of the violence is resistance to possibility, right? There’s something where in people, they’re deeply afraid of all that they are. And a part of the policing is about that possibility. But we can’t actually have a future that works for everybody unless we have possibility.

Alok Vaid-Menon: 100%, it’s about infinity. Infinity is a concept of something that I really wish that we could appreciate more, because we’ve been taught that we live in a template culture; where there are these options, and this is the pathway. But there’s as many ways to be as there are beings. There’s infinite ways to be. And I think for me, my relationship with infinity has been the most beautiful and romantic relationship of my life, because every time I try out something and it doesn’t work, it’s not like, “I’m ruined, I’m over.” It’s like, “Wow, there are a million other ways to be.” It’s kind of like how I’m trying to challenge the idea of being bored. Being bored is so unambitious, because, actually, there’s a billion things that we could be doing. You’re bored? Take up bowling, or start gardening, or learn to plant. But I just realized, “Wait, this world tries to desensitize us to everyone,“ and to ourselves, and to one another, and make it so that if we don’t have an attachment to these categories, then we don’t know who we are.

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The Future of Trans

An Interview with Alok Vaid-Menon

Alok Vaid-Menon: And so I think that a lot of the violence that I experience, and a lot of other gender-nonconforming and transfeminine people experience is we call into question that entire regime of facts. We show that the architecture that they build, with science, and facts, and objectivity, is false. And in that falsity, they have to look at themselves and be like, “am I as real as I thought I was?” And so that’s why I’ve written, and I try to reframe the conversation. This is not actually about me, it’s about you, because you are having an existential crisis on who you are, and your trauma is what’s showing up in this encounter. It’s not about me having a disorder, or me being wrong. I’m literally just walking down the street, dressed really cute, giving you a color combination, you know? And that is literally seen as equivalent to morality, and especially as we’re thinking right now, locating this conversation to what’s happening in this country, right? We’re seeing hundreds of pieces of anti-trans legislation being introduced at the local, state, and national level. And I don’t know why I do this to myself, but I read the arguments that they’re using against us, the ways that they’re justifying it. And what they’re really trying to do is to restrict possibility. At a fundamental level, what they’re actually saying is, “You do not have autonomy. We get to decide what your future is.”

Imara Jones: That’s right. It’s in the interest of the state to decide, because the state rests on our ability to be able to make these definitions. So in this world that you’re creating, and in this relation to pain that we’re talking about, what pain that you currently experience or you acknowledge right now, would not exist in the world that you’re trying to create?

Alok Vaid-Menon: That’s a really insightful question, thank you. Because I recently gave an art talk, and it was at a museum, which I rarely do. And so there was just a very different demographic of people in the audience. And there was an old white cis woman, who was like, “So if you didn’t experience violence, what would you make art about?” And I was just at first mad, because I was like, you would never ask that to another artist without these identities. You just don’t legitimate the violence that I experience, that’s what’s happening here. But then I started to think more ambitiously.

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The Future of Trans

An Interview with Alok Vaid-Menon

Alok Vaid-Menon: And I was like, “There is something to be said about how a lot of my art-making is linked to my experiences of pain." Do I have a perverse relationship with being in pain, because that’s where I get my creative energy from? And so then I started to really question myself, and to be like, “Would there still be pain in the kind of future that I want?” And here’s the truth, the difficult truth: pain will be there forever.

And I’ve really been trying to surrender to that idea, because I think that we constantly try to believe that there’s this pure space outside of suffering, and that’s not true.

Suffering is a foundational part of life, of any life, of any world. But the difference is that in the new world, we will have ritual and ceremony and protocol on how to grapple with suffering, and in this world, we don’t. So in this world when we have suffering, it’s your shortcoming; it’s your fault, go figure it out, desensitize yourself to it. In the other world, it’s gonna be like, your pain is there, and it’s valid, and it’s real; let’s work through this together.

Imara Jones: But also, this is actually a technology, right? Our friend Dora would say that this is a technology, that the technology of ritual is something that we’ve actually lost, because if you look at Buddhism -- you encapsulated it in what you said -- the world is suffering, here are the ways that we can deal with the impact of suffering on our life to not cause more suffering. And there’s religion and rituals built around that.

And there are lots of historical examples of that. It’s a technology that we don’t have, or it’s not as available to us as it once was– Alok Vaid-Menon: And it’s been dispossessed from us.

Imara Jones: Dispossessed is exactly right.

Alok Vaid-Menon: And the reason it has been, is precisely because if we had it, people would recognize that they were worth something else. The way that this system can naturalize itself is when it dispossesses people of an alternative. And that’s what I read the persecution, in particular of non-binary and gender-nonconforming people, as.

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The Future of Trans

An Interview with Alok Vaid-Menon

Alok Vaid-Menon: They want us to disappear so that they can naturalize a binary to say, “This is the only way to work.” And that disappearance masquerades as these pieces of legislation, but it’s really an orchestrated effort to make us not appear in the public. Because when we appear in the public, we call into question the very authority of a gender-binaried system. And I think that, bringing it back to that conversation around technologies of healing rituals, I also am really trying to be generous in the ways in which, yes, there is dispossession, but there also is creative resistance within that. 2020 has been a year for me of focusing on rejuvenation, I’m really trying. 2019 was really bleak for me. I was like, “The world is ending, whoa, everything’s on fire, my life’s on fire, heartbreaks.” 2020, I’m trying to be like, “But what is being birthed still?” And what I’m really excited by is, so many of my peers, other trans and gender-nonconforming artists, are creating and reclaiming those ceremonies, where we’re having really profound rites of passage around trauma.

And I’m trying to situate myself in that, to be like, “Yes, there is negative energy, but there’s also such generative energy.”

Imara Jones: I’m wondering… I mean, as a person who is trans, and non-binary, and gender-nonconforming, in some respects, you are you the future, right? Do you represent where we’re actually going? Does that occur to you? And if so, how do you process that?

Alok Vaid-Menon: No, I reject that, because I don’t want to pinpoint what the future looks like. I might be able to say what the future feels like, but I don’t want to say what it looks like. And I think that what we’ve learned from social movements across time is that they protest norms and then they impose a whole new regime of norms. And I think when it comes to, oftentimes, the trans conversation, there’s this idea of, “This is the way that you’re being the true resistance, is by being visibly gender nonconforming, or being non-binary.” And I’m like, Hey, actually, challenging the gender binary doesn’t look like a certain thing, or having a certain set of beliefs and practices.

It’s about supporting people who, in this regime, are most harmed by it, but recognizing that we’re all harmed by the gender binary.

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The Future of Trans

An Interview with Alok Vaid-Menon

Alok Vaid-Menon: So people could still identify as women, or men, or look at what society traditionally conceives of as men and women. And that’s still part of my future.

And I think people mistake my work and the work of people in our community as being like, “You must all be non-binary and use they/them.” And I’m like, "I’m actually trying to resist the uniform." As an artist, there’s nothing less exciting to me than a uniform. And a uniform for me is not just an outfit, it’s an idea; this idea that we all have to be the same in order to be accepted. The we have to be the same in order to be revolutionary. I say, break that a part. And I think that goes to what I was saying more about the limits of the visual. For me, I’m so much less interested in what people look like, and I’m more interested in how people think. And what I want people to think like is that there are potentially as many genders as there are people. That’s my vision of the future: where man and woman are two of an infinity, not the only options, and where man and woman are not seen as mutually exclusive, or oppositional; they’re just hanging out near each other. And therefore, my vision of the future totally accepts people who identify as men and women, but it doesn’t have space for people who have a belief in the gender binary. It hold space for man and woman, but not for gender binarism.

Imara Jones: I think that that’s a really powerful thing to say. What’s really powerful about that is, presentation is commodified in a capitalist culture. That commodification then gets monetized. That monetization becomes a way of life. One of the things that you are underscoring in that, is that what we have to hold on to is not specifically what the future looks like in terms of how we embody it, but what’s the mental space of the future. What’s the possibility of the future. Not to impose our ideas on that. And what you said, I really agree with. I tell people all the time that, even as I present as binary, I don’t believe in the binary. Like, I can’t. It’s impossible for me. Who we are should not limit our thoughts about who other people can be, and what’s possible.

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The Future of Trans

An Interview with Alok Vaid-Menon

Alok Vaid-Menon: I think that point is the key; it limits who other people because of insecurity. We continually fear that if we don’t have someone who looks and thinks and acts like us, then we’re a freak, or we’re wrong, or we’re lonely. But I want to actually challenge that. I think this is where disability justice movements have been on the front lines forever, this myth that we are all interchangeable with one another, when actually, we all fundamentally have different bodies and different minds, and that there’s not one prototypical experience. That is such a beautiful concept, to actually be like, “No, it’s not loneliness to have individuality, it’s actually just what it means to be alive.” It’s to recognize that we could speak for 13 years and still never really know each other, that’s so exciting to me! And that no ability is obscurity. I don’t want to know you, I want to feel. And what feeling allows me to do is to be like, I may never understand or comprehend, but I will have a deep belief in your fundamental worth and dignity as a person.

Imara Jones: Right, because we’re always changing. The minute someone thinks that they know you, they’re sunk, because you’re not gonna be the same in a year, or two, or three years.

Alok Vaid-Menon: It’s like Battleship.

Imara Jones: 100%, right? We have to learn how to inculcate and enculturate the idea of possibility in everything. That the possibility of what we know and what we are attached to will change. And that’s essential to the future.

Alok Vaid-Menon: I think that people fear possibility, and my job right now is, how do I get people to develop a different relationship with possibility? And so a lot of the work that I’m creating right now, creatively, is, how do I literally convince people about something they don’t even know that they need?

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The Future of Trans

An Interview with Alok Vaid-Menon

Alok Vaid-Menon: That’s such a deep question for me, creatively, right now. Because I feel like I’m in a moment right now, when you were talking about the sort of commodification of these things, where the current conversation is, there are these non-binary people over there, and that’s where we deal with the problem. They are the exception to the rule; we’re gonna put them over there, we’re gonna contain them. But they’re not actually listening. What we’re actually saying is, “Everyone.” We’re speaking to everyone, and they’ve put us over in this box, and they’ve been like, “My pronouns are she/her or he/him, I’m within the binary, you’re over there.” AKA, we have to do the labor of everyone else’s gender dissonance. And what I’m actually trying to say is that all of us benefit from the comprehension of man and woman, femininity and masculine -- but informed by a rigorous critique of the gender binary. And that a world in which we all accept our gender possibility is a world in which we’ll literally be so much happier. It’s so hard, ’cause people resist that. They’ll be like, “I’m not that identity.” And I’m like, “This has never been about identity.”

And so I think a lot of what I’m writing about now, and a lot of what I’m curating in my shows is, can I create spaces? One of the things that I’m doing here at this space for this residency on Thursday is I do something called a feelings workshop. And in a feelings workshop, I bring 30 strangers together, and my goal is that, at the end of the workshop, everyone is friends with each other, and has a meaningful sort of emotional support. And one the things that we do is just, we scream. I ask people to scream as long and as loud as they want. And most people at first, can’t. They’re like, “I’ve never done that, that’s awkward.” But then most people start crying, they were like, “I didn’t know I had so much rage in me.” And I’m like, “Exactly.” If we don’t have the technology, then we don’t know what’s within us. And I think that when it comes to the question of gender, so many people have had to repress their own incongruity with these systems so much that they don’t even know that it’s in them. It’s just become so desensitized. And so I’m just really thinking about, how do I create art which allows people to re-sensitize? How do I create art that doesn’t just critique harassment, but gives affirmation?

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The Future of Trans An Interview with Alok Vaid-Menon

Alok Vaid-Menon: I’ve been really thinking about affirmation. Just aggressively complimenting people and believing in people is so important to me as a practice. It’s just being like, “I’ve got your back 100%.” We really need to support each other in that kind of way.

Imara Jones: Well, I personally feel a sense of possibility in talking to you, and I thank you for that gift, and thank you for your vision, and your work, and your commitment.

And I really appreciate the time.

Alok Vaid-Menon: Thank you, this has been so great.

Imara Jones: Thank you so much, I really appreciate it.

Alok Vaid-Menon: Of course.

Imara Jones: And that’s a wrap!

Alok Vaid-Menon: Yay!

ALOK (they/them) is a gender non-conforming writer and performance artist. Their distinctive style and poetic challenge to the gender binary have been internationally renowned. As a mixed-media artist Alok uses poetry, prose, comedy, performance, fashion design, and portraiture to explore themes of gender, race, trauma, belonging, and the human condition. learn more: alokvmenon.com

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CELEBRATING TRANS ART featuring Jade Obrebski

Daily Routine (2020) This piece represents my daily routine as a transgender woman, which includes shaving my face and putting on makeup. The color palette is inspired by that of the transgender pride flag, and takes into account the symbolism of the colors to represent masculinity, femininity, and that which is in-between.

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CELEBRATING TRANS ART featuring Jade Obrebski

Thank you for the wonderful TransLash Podcast with Imara Jones, and your hard work and dedication to giving the transgender community a place to share their stories, their experiences, and all around make their voices heard. I wish you many years of continued success. Much love.

Since losing my job at the beginning of the pandemic, I've been making art for LGBTQ+ Twitch streamers and podcasts, and I'm currently accepting commissions. Thank you so much for the opportunity! I hope you experience some joy in your day.

With hope and pride, Jade

Jade is a trans femme freelance graphic designer living in Oregon.

Recently, she started to explore ways to express trans joy in her art, and has released a collection of transgender celebration cards on her Redbubble. Her socials are: jadeoart.com + jadeoart.tumblr.com, Redbubble store: Darthjak, paypal: jadeoart@yahoo.com.

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CELEBRATING TRANS ART featuring J. Mack

A Different Walk (2020) Illustration of emotional displacement in the current state of the world whilst staying grounded like an evolving Mountain.

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CELEBRATING TRANS ART featuring J. Mack

Animated Higher Self (2020) A response to anti-Blackness on a facebook group when an Indigenous, aboriginal, trans, non-binary light being was specific when asking for what they wanted.

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CELEBRATING TRANS ART featuring J. Mack

MPJ the Empress (2020) Art created for the Marsha P. Johnson Fan Club in homage of the great and powerful Marsha P. Johnson.

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CELEBRATING TRANS ART featuring J. Mack

Progress Now ft. James Baldwin (2020) I portrayed the ancestor James Baldwin as Chief Father Time. Inspired by his interview, “How Much Time Do You Want For Your “Progress”? This clip still resonates today!

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CELEBRATING TRANS ART featuring J. Mack

I are originally from Orange Mound, Memphis, TN, and an alumni of Wesleyan University and the Stax Music Academy.

I am a futuristic, multi-medium artist.

I utilize dance, acting, music, poetry, and sound production to articulate a unique and enlightening message based in New Orleans, Louisiana.

My influences are Traditional Ghanaian music, Clave, Afrobeat, Soul, Jazz, Gospel, and Hip-Hop which inform my unique and eclectic sound.

- J. MACK

J. Mack (They/Them) Their IG: @jmackent MUSIC: jmackent.bandcamp.com twitter: @jmack_ent tiktok: @therealjmackent venmo: @jmackent, cashapp: $jmackent

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TRANSLASH PODCAST WITH IMARA JONES Episode 1 Highlights

On August 8, 2020, TransLash Podcast with Imara Jones debuted on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, and everywhere else on the Internet! With anti-trans violence and political backlash at all-time highs, award-winning journalist Imara Jones hosts this podcast where trans people and allies talk back about what matters most, and discuss how to create a fairer world for all. TransLash Podcast is a Spotify #2020Wrapped Honoree, and if you haven’t had a chance to listen yet, here are some quotes from past guests. Subscribe wherever you listen to podcasts: translash.org/podcast

Episode 1: ‘Biden-Harris and Trans Votes’

“I really just try to focus on what’s right in front of me. Certainly my election was historic, and I recognize that, and I think it’s a really positive thing for young trans people to be able to see a person like myself, a person like my colleague Phillipe Cunningham, who also serves on the Minneapolis City Council, a Black trans man; Danica Roem in Virginia; Brianna Titone in Colorado, so many trans-identified leaders all over the country. It’s really important to see that kind of representation. You know, I’m trying to do the work today… but I really try to make my decisions based on what is important to move progress forward today, and not necessarily thinking about the historic implications of the future.”

- Andrea Jenkins, Minneapolis City Council Vice President

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TRANSLASH PODCAST WITH IMARA JONES Episode 1 Highlights

Episode 1: ‘Biden-Harris and Trans Votes’

“We need to make sure that those of us that are in the professional world, those of us at Microsoft, those of us at Google, those of us at Facebook, those of us at Apple, etc., are making sure that we are acting as stewards with our scientific researchers that are building these models and datasets and that these models and datasets reflect a truly intersectional segment of our of our general population. We can’t capture everyone, but we need to make sure we get every outlier and that that outlier represents the larger population of and amongst our own community.

If you haven’t, you definitely should be speaking with a good friend of mine, Dr. Safiya Noble at UCLA and the work that she’s done looking at algorithms of oppression and how this sort of manifests itself and shows up in the matrix of domination through misrepresentation of marginalized communities, especially within search. And this is something that is really important that we’re working on, in particular, my own team here and helping make search even better. And I know Google has a team that’s looking at this, but it’s an ongoing effort.”

- Ana Arriola, General Manager and partner for AI design and research, NEXT at Microsoft

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Getting Through the Holidays (and life) During a Pandemic

by Yannick Eike Mirko

We’re stuck in place. The consequences of seeing others, though an otherwise normalized behavior for this time of year, are far greater than before. I write this with the recognition that not everyone has people to see, places to go, or the means to get there. Not everyone is surrounded by people that feel safe to be who they truly are. No matter where you land, there’s something to gain from looking inwards. So, here are three methods I have found useful all year round - but especially now - to make it through while bettering my relationship with myself.

Practice Self-Compassion: I know from speaking with friends (which is also an important tip, reach out to people when you need to. For whoever needs to hear it: you’re allowed to do that) that I’m not the only person who’s incredibly hard on themselves. The issue here is that it’s far from productive, it’s a harmful persona that a piece of me takes on to ensure that I never feel allowed to be okay. If reading that sounds familiar to you, I want you to give yourself an emotional hug, give yourself the patience and compassion you’d give to a friend, because it’s what you’re worth and deserving of having. Remember when discouraged that, from this challenge, the rewards are always worth the work.

Assess Your Needs: Check in and see what might be missing, what you might need, and try to fulfill that. Perhaps they’re needs you have put on the back burner, or needs you didn’t necessarily recognize having. They don’t all look the same, so get creative with how you’re looking for and fulfilling them. If fulfilling is too hard to start with, keep it as a goal while you focus your efforts on the acceptance that there are needs, and don’t fault yourself for where you are with it.

Find (new) things to appreciate: Sometimes being surrounded by the same things for long periods of time makes it harder to find gratitude for them, but finding gratitude again for the things you acknowledge can be a grounding experience; the way your head feels coming off of the pillow in the morning; the sounds of cars and people passing your window; the texture of your favorite shirt, the taste of your own cooking; Explore your surroundings, and thank them for being there in the way that they are.

Remember you are in charge of how things feel to you: You don’t have an obligation to be joyful at this time. It doesn’t need to be the Happiest New Year. You’ve put so much work into finding the right community to have around you, remember that you deserve to put that much effort into making sure you’re okay, and know that doing that isn’t letting anyone down. You can’t be there for anyone else if you aren’t taking the best care of and being there for yourself. So, remove yourself from as many obligations as possible, plan things you enjoy for the days where you find it harder to be alone, do what you need to do to be okay, and don’t think twice about it. Things are allowed to be sad, they’re allowed to be happy; you’re allowed to be there for yourself.

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Getting Through the Holidays (and life) During a Pandemic

by Yannick Eike Mirko

And finally, allow yourself to have hope: It’s okay to not be able to see tomorrow in complete, vivid detail in the same way that it’s okay to picture it being the best day you’ll ever have. It’s never a mistake to manifest positive energy and experiences for your future, and for the future of the world.

This year has been a test on my relationship with outlook and positivity, and I know that though it felt a little silly and a little naive to have hope for the future at first, it was never those things. Hope is a beautiful thing to have.

Remember, everything you’re feeling right now is more than valid, and okay. I hope applying some of these practices into your life makes experiencing this holiday season and this pandemic a little easier. You’re being thought of and the best is being wished for you. You can do it.

Yannick Eike Mirko [He/They] is a BIPOC folk musician, writer, actor, and activist, whose work focuses on effective storytelling for causes that matter, often times more specifically for people living a transgender experience. He lives and works in New York where he is finishing his degree in Sociology and working on upcoming music releases. find YANNICK ON INSTAGRAM: @_yeikes

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Trans-Owned Business Directory HOLIDAYS 2020 EDITION

Shop trans during the holidays and year-round! Let's support our entrepreneurial community.

Team TransLash made a list of trans-owned businesses to support: from makeup to clothes to visual art, we’ve got you covered. Below are just a few of the businesses we included in our directory. Make sure to check translash.org frequently for updates to this resource.

Armani Dae’s Art Shop: Armani Dae is a transgender Jamaican-American artist, photographer, and actor. His work and store consists of photography prints, one-of-a-kind paintings, published books and apparel. The paintings also have payment plans available making them accessible to every buyer.

Website: armanidae.square.site | Instagram: @armanidaephotography Automic Gold: “Radically wearable jewelry for everyone”. With founder Al Sandimirova at the helm, Automic Gold aims to design jewelry that is both size inclusive and catered towards a diverse clientele. All pieces are made from reclaimed gold, and shipped in a packaging that is recyclable, making this a company that not only preaches about community, but truly embodies that philosophy.

Website: automicgold.com | Instagram: @automicgold BatMe! Cosmetics: Launched in 2017, BatMe! Cosmetics sets out to celebrate queer individuality and culture. Founded by TV personality Jayla Roxx, this is the first African-American transgender woman to open a makeup company. They are an affordable, vegan-based, gluten & cruelty-free brand that embraces every gender, race, religion, etc. in high hopes to build an ever growing community.

Website: batmecosmetics.com | Instagram: @batmecosmetics ProjectQ: Founder Madin Ray Lopez began doing hair in high school. Their mission is to use hair and self-empowerment as a form of social justice while also providing free gender-affirming haircuts, self empowering workshops, food & hygiene boxes, gender affirming clothing, chest binders, menstrual products, and so much more to LGBTQIA+ youth experiencing homelessness. Their online shop consists of hair products, as well as pins and clothing.

Website: projectq.me | Instagram: @project_q_ We Live In Truth!: We Live in Truth (We L.I.T.) is a Black, trans, non-binary-led candle company founded in 2019. The brand focuses on the emotional, mental, and spiritual well-being of their community and promotes the healing properties of candles and has a wide array of scents that range from flowery to fruity and more.

Website: weliveintruth.com/teas| Instagram: @weliveintruth_welit

EXPLORE THE FULL TRANS-OWNED BUSINESS DIRECTORY ON OUR WEBSITE: TRANSLASH.ORG PAGE 32 OF 38

Top 3 Trans Moments of 2020

by Imara Jones, TransLash Founder & Producer

As it was for many of you, 2020 was a year which left me traumatized and tired. The simultaneous crises of COVID-19, mass unemployment, racial injustice, and the historic number of trans murders pushed us all to the edge. But it was also a year in which millions across the country woke up to what many of us have been saying for years. Principally that our society has to fundamentally reorient itself towards justice and equity for us all to thrive. To put it bluntly, it’s either all of us moving forward together or none of us will. As a result, even in all the difficulty this year, there were important breakthroughs and new visioning which will help us create a better world for everyone. Despite all this disruption and opening, I am proud that TransLash has been pushing our understanding of what’s happening and where we need to go.

With all of these contrasting changes, here are my three standout happenings of 2020: I. The Future of Trans: In June of this year, we released a documentary to imagine our future as trans people in the biggest way possible. The desire for this film grew out of an intense need to give myself as an adult the opportunity that I had been denied as a child: the ability to imagine my future as my myself. I don’t think that most people realize how important this is unless you spend your childhood without it. Projecting ourselves into our futures, daydreaming about who will be and what we will be, is essential to propelling us forward. Imagining our future is the way that we create our future; it is the way that we create space for ourselves. When I started crisscrossing the country to talk to the brightest and smartest people I know, I didn’t realize how common my experience as a kid was.

That is why I hope that you will spend time this Holiday Season, during the darkest part of the year, taking the time to dream a bright, wide open future for yourself, for those you love, and for our community.

II. TransLash Podcast: Each passing year, our community is more and more the subject of mainstream media sources. Trans, non-binary and gender non-conforming people are talked about in the news, conversations about culture, and by politicians at the federal, state, and local level. But very rarely do we actually get to talk back about what matters to our community. Quite frankly, there is no excuse for this. Because there is not an area of life that I can think of where trans people are not only present––but leading. My desire for people to understand the depth of our community, and the tremendous insights we have about the world around us, is what led me to create this podcast.

Personally, I am deeply enriched by each podcast conversation. I continue to be blown away by how much creativity, wisdom, and inspiration our podcast guests have. They mirror the broader genius which exists within and around us. So if you are feeling drained and down after this excruciating year, put on your headphones and go on a journey into the hope which is at the heart of the TransLash Podcast: translash.org/podcast

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Top 3 Trans Moments of 2020

by Imara Jones, TransLash Founder & Producer

III. #BlackTransLivesMatter: This summer, 20,000 people gathered at the Brooklyn Museum to demand equality for Black trans women. I was one of them. This rally and march, known commonly as the Black Trans March for Liberation, was the single largest action for trans live in the history of the United States. It was organized by Raquel Willis, Ianne Fields Stewart, and Ceyenne Doroshow, among others. I know each of these amazing leaders, but had no idea what I was in store for that day. In reality, I had forgotten that the march was taking place that Sunday. I had been suffering from terrible migraines all month, since the death of George Floyd in late May, and it had slipped my mind.

However, texts from my friends and from Ruby Fludzinski, a producer at TransLash who I had assigned to cover the event, all reminded me. I raced to the Brooklyn Museum not far from where I live. Upon arrival, I knew that I needed to make my way to where the speakers were addressing the crowd. The press area was on the main stage, but to get there I had to wade through thousands.

Somehow I said “excuse me” enough and gently pushed others out of the way to make my way to the press pen. And when I was able to summit the stairs and look out on the sea of humanity in every direction, I was deeply moved.

It felt that our community had turned a massive corner. There were so many people who showed up to say that our lives matter and that they were ready to fight for them.

And it is the light, heat, and determination of that day which we need to hold on now more than ever.

So hold on to the light, heat, and determination of that bright summer day.

You can watch all of the speeches and much of the march itself online. Watch a TransLash video about that day in our @translashmedia IGTV stories under the series category 'TransLash Live Video' for June 14, 2020. Be sure to give yourself that gift this Holiday Season.

Imara Jones is the creator of TransLash Media, an award-winning journalist and thought leader. she is the first Journalist-in-Residence at WNYC’s The Greene Space, hosting the monthly program #LivesAtStake.

Imara’s work as a host, on-air news analyst, and writer focuses on the full-range of social justice and equity issues.

Learn more: imarajones.com & Find her on IG: @imara_jones_ Photo credit: Richie

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COVID-19 RESOURCES FOR TRANS / NON-BINARY / INTERSEX / TGNC COMMUNITIES Team TransLash is committed to helping alleviate our community’s fears and anxieties during this difficult time. On March 25th, 2020, we compiled this tracker: a directory of coronavirusrelated resources for transgender, non-binary, and intersex people. This resource is being updated in real-time, so keep checking it for new additions! We will add more international resources in 2021. Submit any useful links that we may have missed here: translash.org/connect Coronavirus (COVID-19) Guide by The National Center for Transgender Equality transequality.org/covid19 Transgender Legal Defense & Education Fund's Know Your Rights Guide TLDEF created a guide for transgender and non-binary people who are grappling with questions related to employment, housing, health care, identification, and accessing assistance from government agencies among other issues. The guide is available in both English and Español: transgenderlegal.org/stay-informed/read-know-your-rights-during-covid-19 The Trans LifeLine for peer support for trans folks: 1-877-565-8860 This hotline is staffed exclusively by trans operators is the only crisis line with a policy against nonconsensual active rescue.

COVID-19 Resources for Undocumented Immigrants https://www.undocuscholars.com El/La Para La Trans Latina Mutual Aid Mutual Aid gift cards for trans/GNC folks: ellaparatranslatinas.yolasite.com Callen-Lorde TransAtlas A digital resource map for people of transgender, non-binary and/or intersex experience living in New York City: transatlas.callen-lorde.org TIPS FOR WHEN STAYING HOME ISN’T THE SAFEST PLAN The Anti-Violence Project shares resources and tips: avp.org You can also call AVP’s 24/7 hotline 212-714-1141.

EXPLORE THE FULL COVID-19 RESOURCES DIRECTORY ON OUR WEBSITE: TRANSLASH.ORG PAGE 35 OF 38

wellness tips WITH Xaria James

With everything I have on my plate, my overall health & wellness is something I cherish dearly so I can continue to show up at my best, without relying on too much coffee & Red Bull, which isn't the best for my body!

Here are my Top 4 tips for overall health and wellness: I. At least 30 minutes of exercise per day: whether it’s going for a walk, gym classes, etc.

Moving your body is a great way to help reduce stress. You can even do a free, quick dance class on YouTube! Google "adaptive fitness" for exercise routines that are accessible for many bodies types and abilities.

II. I try to limit myself to dining out once per week. I love fast food, but nothing beats a home-cooked meal! It helps me save money & to eat healthier. I also limit alcohol consumption & sodas.

III. When I have a few minutes of downtime, I take a few moments to take a few deep breaths and meditate. This keeps your mind clear so you can truly focus on any task at hand.

IV. I try to stretch daily! Simple things: touch your toes, stretch at your elbow joints, and squats to support knee flexibility. My flexibility has saved me in some of the worst uh-oh situations imaginable; things happen!

These are my personal tips, & everyone should have their own wellness plan based on their own body type and capacity! We are all beautiful in our own way, & practicing self-love will allow you to radiate and glow as you strive to continue becoming your best self!

Love Always, Xaria James

Xaria James IS a business owner & retired gymnast. HER advocacy endeavors INCLUDE SUPPORTING Miami Beach Pride, The National LGBTQ+ Task Force, AND workING with Blue cross Blue Shield & The Clear Health Alliance Network throughout Florida. LEARN MORE: Xariajames.com | ig: @xxarria

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'WHAT WILL MY CHILDREN CALL ME?'

BY DANIELA CAPISTRANO, FOUNDER OF POC ZINE PROJECT

Not a woman, not a mother I'm non-binary, a changeling who checks "Other" Still as invested in co-parenting as I was when I rocked my dolls and made lists of baby names My heart remains the same What will my children call me?

Mama is familiar, but doesn't feel right Daddy or Papa makes my throat feel tight, restricted by binary rules my spirit doesn't fit into What should I do?

Maybe we'll be on a first name basis I'll call them [name here] and they'll call me Dani I've always wanted a family that I could call my own I'll tell them call me whatever you want, be whoever you want and with me you'll always have a home

DANIELA "DANI" CAPISTRANO (SHE/THEY) IS ADJUSTING TO NEW WAYS OF BEING WHILE RUNNING THEIR BUSINESS DCAP MEDIA & LEADING INITIATIVES FOR POC ZINE PROJECT, THEIR EXPERIMENT IN ART, ACTIVISM, & COMMUNITY THROUGH MATERIALITY SINCE 2010.

LEARN MORE: @POCZINEPROJECT | Follow Dani on twitter: @dcap DANI IDENTIFIES AS QUEER/NON-BINARY/chicana(x)/LATINX/SURVIVOR/STORYTELLER.

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TransLash Community Opportunities translash tells trans stories to save trans lives. WANT TO GET INVOLVED? HERE ARE A FEW WAYS TO COLLABORATE WITH US: Send us your story ideas for TransLash Podcast with Imara Jones: translashpodcast@translash.org Share your TransLash Podcast reviews on Apple Podcasts! Every positive review helps us to reach more folks in our community.

We appreciate your support!

Post about TransLash Podcast on your own social media! It helps us reach a wider audience.

Be a contributing writer for TransLash.org. We will be sharing. compensated opportunities in 2021! Subscribe to our newsletter to be among the first to receive alerts: translash.org/connect Help us beat Facebook's transphobic algorithm in 2021! Be sure to Like, Comment, and Share as often as you can. Thanks, fam.

CONTACT US TODAY!

Go to translash.org/connect, or send us a DM on Twitter/IG/Facebook: @translashmedia

LEARN MORE ABOUT TRANSLASH & EXPLORE ALL OF OUR RESOURCES ON OUR WEBSITE: TRANSLASH.ORG PAGE 38 OF 38

zine

DECEMBER 2020 | VOLUME 2

TRANSLASH ZINE IS SPONSORED & DISTRIBUTED BY POC ZINE PROJECT Since 2010, POC Zine Project has been an experiment in art, activism, and community through materiality. In 2019, POC Zine Project founder Daniela Capistrano partnered with TransLash Media to donate labor & resources to launch the first issue of TransLash Zine, and has done the same in 2020.

Learn more about POC Zine Project's other sponsored publication, Bulbancha Is Still A Place: Indigenous Culture From New Orleans: bulbanchaisstillaplace.org

COLLAB WITH POC ZINE PROJECT Are you a BIPOC zinester looking for a publishing & distribution sponsor?

Send a DM on Twitter, Facebook, or Instagram: @poczineproject.

Black trans/non-binary/intersex zinesters to the front!

Are you an academic institution interested in purchasing print copies of TransLash? Email daniela@dcapmedia.com for bulk order rates. Discounts available for BIPOC & TGNC educators.

All proceeds go to support future editions of TransLash Zine.

Contributors for the 2020 edition were paid $100 per submission.

Copyright © 2020 DCAP MEDIA LLC for POC Zine Project and TransLash Media. All rights reserved.

This zine or any portion thereof may not be reproduced or used in any manner whatsoever for commercial use without the express written permission of the publisher, DCAP MEDIA LLC.