Interview with Chloe Schwenke

Monika: Today it is my pleasure and honor to interview Chloe Schwenke, a human rights and peacebuilding activist, development practitioner, and academic with over three decades of international experience, including 15 years of work while based in the Global South. She is the Director of the Global Program on Violence, Rights, and Inclusion at the International Center for Research on Women.

Monika: The transgender community is said to be thriving now. As Laverne Cox announced, “Trans is beautiful.” Teenage girls become models and dancers, talented ladies become writers, singers, and actresses. Those ladies with an interest in politics, science, and business become successful politicians, academics, and businesswomen. What do you think in general about the present situation of transgender women in American society? Are we just scratching the surface or the change is really happening?

Chloe: I would hardly say that the transgender community is thriving, simply because a few transgender models and actors become celebrities, and a few trans folks are publishing. Yes, we are making our presence known more emphatically, but we are also facing extraordinary push-back, violence, exclusion, humiliation, scapegoating, and – globally – a rising death rate from extreme violence.

Interview with Erin Swenson

Monika: Today it is my pleasure and honor to interview Erin Swenson, an American licensed psychotherapist, transgender rights activist, the first-known mainstream Protestant minister to make a gender transition and retain ordained office. Since turning age 60, she has completed 34 triathlons, including two Half-Ironman events. Hello Erin!

Erin: Hi Monika. What an honor to be interviewed by you. Congratulations on your work as a transgender activist.

Monika: When I read about your triathlon experience I thought, wow such a tough lady! Could you say a few words about yourself?
Erin: I think being transgender requires a certain amount of toughness, so my interest in triathlon fits my temperament. I am not fast (although I tend to win/place in age group races) and my goal for every race is to have fun and cross the finish line vertically. I am 70 years old and find cross-training (swim/bike/run) very helpful to maintain my own health and wellness. But going through a gender transition is MUCH tougher than a Half-Ironman.

Interview with Juno Roche

Monika: Today it is my pleasure and honor to interview Juno Roche, a Writer, and Campaigner, Patron of cliniQ, and a Trustee of the Sophia Forum. Juno writes for a wide range of publications and is currently writing her first book. Juno campaigns for transgender equality focusing on the education and sexual healthcare sectors. Juno has been HIV positive for over twenty years and considers herself a 'long-term thriver'. Juno was a Blair Peach Award winner, one of the most influential LGBTQ leaders in the UK, listed in the Rainbow List 2014/2015 and the World Pride Power List 2015. Juno was shortlisted for the European Campaigner of the Year in 2016 and has just been shortlisted for Campaigner of the Year by Diva Magazine. Hello Juno!

Juno: Hi Monika, it's lovely to chat with you.

Monika: Could you say a few words about yourself?

Juno: Mmmm, a few words, I'm known really for talking an awful lot so a few words always seem difficult, but I am a happy, energized, and driven woman who wants simply to make a world for trans peeps which is full of aspiration and equal chances and to enjoy my own life.

Interview with Alexus Sheppard

Monika: Today it is my pleasure and honor to interview Alexus Sheppard from the USA. Alexus recently published her memoir, From Both Sides Now, which is available from Amazon, iTunes, Barnes & Noble, and Nook. She is a published author, educator, transgender activist, blogger, and happily married woman with two beautiful grown daughters. Hello Alexus!

Alexus: Hello, Monika. And thank you for this interview.

Monika: Could you say a few words about yourself?

Alexus: My life has been a series of contradictions and expansions. Since I grew up on a farm in rural Kansas, I was raised much like any other conservative, Midwestern, Christian child. But even with this very structured childhood, I was aware at an early age that something was different about me. As a result, I never felt that I “fit” into any particular group of children. This inner angst was the early seed of my life as an “outsider” and decades later would lead to the start of my spiritual journey away from a conservative and traditional life.

Interview with Riki Wilchins

Monika: Today it is my pleasure and honor to interview Riki Wilchins, an American LGBTQ rights activist, one of six activists named by TIME Magazine among its "100 Civic Innovators for the 21st Century," founder of The Transsexual Menace, Camp Trans, GenderPAC, and author of "Read My Lips: Sexual Subversion and the End of Gender" (1997). Hello Riki!

Riki: Hello Monika!

Monika: Do you still wear the Transsexual Menace logo? :)
Riki: Alas, no – I haven’t had an occasion to wear mine lately.
Monika: Here is my favorite quote of yours from Read My Lips: "Academics, shrinks, and feminist theorists have traveled through our lives and problems like tourists on a junket. Picnicking on our identities like flies at a free lunch, they have selected the tastiest tidbits with which to illustrate a theory or push a book." Is it still valid?
Riki: I think it’s finally improved. Folks realize we’re not just some gender-weird tribe for them to cut their professional teeth on.

Interview with Brenda Appleton

Monika: Today it is my pleasure and honor to interview Brenda Appleton, an Australian transgender activist and strong advocate for improved rights for trans and gender diverse people. Hello Brenda!

Brenda: Thanks Monika for the opportunity to discuss the trans community and how and where I fit into the community in Melbourne.

Monika: Could you say a few words about yourself?

Brenda: I am now 65 and have been retired for 7 years. I was born in NZ but have lived in Australia, mostly Melbourne, for more than 20 years. I transitioned more than 14 years ago when I was working for a multinational organization and have not had a moment of hesitation that it was the right decision for me.

Interview with Tista Das

Monika: Today it is my pleasure and honor to interview Tista Das, who is an Indian actress, social activist, transgender advocate, and icon of empowerment and choice for the transgender community in India. Hello Tista!

Tista: Hello Monika.

Monika: When did you decide to pursue an acting career?
Tista: I wanted to pursue a career in acting from my childhood days. While viewing a movie, there were quite a number of occasions in which I fantasized about myself with on-screen heroines like Suchitra Sen or Sharmila Tagore. I used to imitate them, like the way they pout or walk or look at heroes.

Interview with Katherine Cummings

Monika: Today it is my pleasure and honor to interview Katherine Cummings, an icon of the Australian transgender movement, librarian, sailor, activist for transgender people, award-winning author; she works at Sydney’s Gender Centre – an organization set up in 1983 to help people with gender issues – and is the information worker and edits the Centre’s quarterly magazine Polare.

Hello Katherine!
Katherine: Hello Monika. I am honored (and flattered) by your introduction. You could just have said, as Deirdre McCloskey did in her book, Crossing, that I am a gender saint (please don’t guffaw too loudly).
Monika: Could you say a few words about yourself?
Katherine: If there is such a thing I’d say I am a fairly typical transgender. My wish to be female goes back as far as memories go but I only found out that my impossible dream could be a possible dream when I was seventeen, in my first year at university, when Christine Jorgensen was outed. Up to that point I had known about gay people, female impersonators, and intersex (although we didn’t call them intersex in 1952) and knew I was none of those things.

Interview with Sandy Stone

Monika: Today it is my pleasure and honor to interview Sandy Stone, an American academic theorist, writer, and founder of the academic discipline of transgender studies. She is currently Associate Professor and Founding Director of the Advanced Communication Technologies Laboratory (ACTLab) and the New Media Initiative in the Department of Radio-TV-Film at the University of Texas at Austin. Hello Sandy!

Sandy: Hi Monika!
Monika: What are you doing these days?
Sandy: Teaching. Writing. Making a recording studio. Making robots. Making art. Doing things with my grandkid. Hanging out with my family. Performing, lecturing. Discoursing with Cynbe. Living life. Having a hell of a good time.

Interview with Pauline Park

Monika: Today it is my pleasure and honor to interview Pauline Park, a human rights activist, transgender advocate, the chair of the New York Association for Gender Rights Advocacy (NYAGRA), president of the board of directors as well as former executive director of Queens Pride House, co-founder of Iban/Queer Koreans of New York, named to a list of 'The 2012 Most Influential LGBT Asian Icons' and '50 Transgender Icons' for Transgender Day of Remembrance 2012. Hello Pauline!

Pauline: Hello, Monika!

Monika: Your life is very extraordinary. You are a Korean-American adoptee…
Pauline: Yes, I was born in Korea and adopted by European American parents, and raised in Milwaukee (Wisconsin). You might be surprised by some things we have in common; you're Polish, and I grew up on the south side of Milwaukee, which is predominantly German and Polish Catholic (it was even more so when I was growing up there in the 1960s and 1970s). I grew up eating kielbasa and punchki as well as sauerkraut -- which is like a bland, non-spicy German version of kimchi~!

Interview with Tela La'Raine Love

Monika: Today it is my pleasure and honor to interview Tela La'Raine Love, an American transgender activist from New Orleans, Louisiana. Hello Tela!

Tela: Greetings Monika!

Monika: Could you say a few words about yourself?

Tela: Sure, let me start by saying I believe this is a truly awesome thing you are doing for the transgender folk who can identify with the experience. I am honored that you wanted me to take part. With that being said you know my name is Tela La'Raine Love and I self-identify as a trans-experienced woman.

I view myself as a woman with trans-experience and not of the trans-experience because being trans is not the totality of my being but merely a facet of who I am. I am a trailblazer in the sense that I am one of the few trans-woman of color from south New Orleans, Louisiana that has chosen not to fully assimilate into a life of stealth. Why? That choice is simply not an option for me.

Interview with Mey Rude

Monika: Today it is my pleasure and honor to interview Mey Rude, the Trans Editor at Autostraddle, a writer, blogger, and transgender activist. Hello Mey!

Mey: Hi!

Monika: Could you say a few words about yourself?

Mey: Well, obviously, my name is Mey. I’m a transgender Latina who lives in Idaho in the US. I’m also a lesbian, and a comic book nerd, and a writer. I work as the Trans Editor for the website Autostraddle.com.

Monika: As Trans Editor at Autostraddle, you follow and comment on all the trends related to the visibility of transgender women in the media. Thanks to the success of “Orange Is the New Black,” “Transparent,” “New Girls on the Block,” and “True Trans With Laura Jane Grace” and other TV productions, we have faced increasing visibility of trans characters. Is it a stable trend?

Mey: I really hope so. I think that all the awards that have been going to “Orange Is the New Black” and “Transparent”, as well as the recent Emmy win for Laverne Cox’s TV documentary “Laverne Cox Presents: The T Word” will encourage more people to take a chance on trans stories and trans characters. And we’ve been starting to see that. There are going to be a bunch of new shows featuring trans characters this year, including several with fictional trans characters played by trans actresses, so I think that’s a very good sign.

Interview with Jessica O’Donnell

Monika: Today it is my pleasure and honor to interview Jessica O’Donnell formerly known as Jessica Cummings. She is an American transgender activist, video blogger, former co-host of Transition Radio. Hello Jessica!

Jessica: Hi Monika! Thank you for providing me with this opportunity to be a part of such a positive outlet for our community. I am truly honored to be included in this!

Monika: Could you say a few words about yourself?

Jessica: Sure! I am a 40-year-old transgender woman who like others has struggled with my gender and identity my entire life. When I started daycare and through 1st grade, I thought I was a girl but learned very quickly that if I wanted to be accepted by others I had to act like a boy.

Interview with Sass Rogando Sasot

Monika: Today it is my pleasure and honor to interview Sass Rogando Sasot, a transpinay (a Filipina trans woman of Philippine descent) advocating for the dignity of trans people, aspiring to become an international relations scholar and practitioner of diplomacy, and hoping to improve the visibility of trans folks in international politics. Hello Sass!

Sass: Hello, Monika! Thank you for having me here!

Monika: Could you say a few words about yourself?

Sass: I am a passionate, reflective, dedicated, and determined person. I love to read, write, and reflect on what makes us human - the good, the bad, the ugly, and the divine. I am always a work in progress. This has meant different things in different stages of my life.

Right now, I’m on my way to becoming an international relations scholar, who has an affinity with classical realism, and a future practitioner of diplomacy, who wants to become involved in the field of conflict resolution and transformation. In the process, I would like to help improve the visibility of trans people in international politics.

Interview with Joanne Borden

Monika: Today it is my pleasure and honor to interview Joanne Borden, a transgender activist from the USA, former industrial engineering consultant, president of two engineering societies, and happy father and grandfather. Hello Joanne!

Joanne: Hello Monika.

Monika: Could you say a few words about yourself?
Joanne: When talking about myself it is rarely just a few words because I’m my favorite topic! In 89 years, anyone would have a lengthy biography so I have a great deal to say about myself. Briefly, I am a transgender woman who was always a happy person. As a friend once said, “You were always a happy person but now (after “coming out”) you are always happy!” I credit that to being a realist.

Interview with Karine Solene Espineira

Monika: Today it is my pleasure and honor to interview Karine Solene Espineira, a Chilean-born transgender activist from France, one of the most inspirational and charismatic leaders of the transgender community in France, blogger, the author of "Transidentité: Ordre et panique de genre" (2015), "Médiacultures: la transidentité en télévision" (2015), “La Transyclopédie: Tout Savoir Sur Les Transidentités” (2012) – an encyclopedia of the transgender movement in France (but just not). She is a researcher at the University of Nice Sophia Antipolis, and a member of the coordination team of the international campaign Stop Trans Pathologization. Hello Karine!

Karine: Hello Monika! I’m very enchanted by this interview. Thank you for it. It is an honor to contribute to your blog, which is a precious source of information about our community. Our stories can contribute to the culture of our groups but also to the “common culture”. I also have to apologize for my English … but my Spanish is better and my French is fantastic!

Interview with Andrea Zekis

Monika: Today it is my pleasure and honor to interview Andrea Zekis, a cartographer and transgender activist from Arkansas, USA. She’s executive director of the Arkansas Transgender Equality Coalition and consultant to the Human Rights Campaign in Arkansas. Hello Andrea!

Andrea: Hello Monika! Thank you for the opportunity to explain myself! Ha! Ha! Seriously, I appreciate the opportunity to talk to you about the work I take part in and the community I serve.

Monika: Could you say a few words about yourself?

Andrea: I’m 36, originally from the Chicago area, but have called Arkansas home since 2005. At the time, I was married, living as a man, and working as a journalist. Since age 3, I knew there was something different about myself, but didn’t learn the word transgender until I was 18 years old.

Interview with Abby Louise Jensen

Monika: Today it is my pleasure and honor to interview Abby Louise Jensen, a transgender attorney and activist now living in Tucson, Arizona. She is Vice President of the Southern Arizona Gender Alliance, a member of the Sexual Orientation and Gender Identity Committee of the Arizona State Bar Association and the City of Tucson’s GLBT Advisory Commission, the former President and member of the Board of Directors of QsquaredYouth, a co-founder and member of the Board of Directors of Prescott Area Shelter Services, and honoree on the inaugural Trans 100 list (2013). Hello Abby!

Abby: Hi, Monika! Thanks for giving me the chance to be interviewed for your blog. 

Monika: Could you say a few words about yourself?
Abby: Sure. I’ve been an attorney since 1982, but I didn’t decide to transition until 2007. So, I’ve been living full-time as Abby for just under 8 years.
Although I often thought about being a girl or woman when I was younger, I gave up that dream when I was in my late 20’s and resolved myself to living as a man for the rest of my life.

Interview with Claire Russell

Monika: Today it is my pleasure and honor to interview Claire Russell, a transgender activist from San Diego, California, creator of the online San Diego Trans Resource Center, and co-organizer of the first annual Trans*Pride and March. Hello Claire!

Claire: Hey! Thanks for having me!

Monika: Could you say a few words about yourself?
Claire: I’m a 25-year-old trans woman from Southern California. I live with my supportive family and work two jobs. I love archery, sailing, video games, nature, etiquette, technology, NPR, children, dogs, and piña coladas. I was Ms. Trans San Diego 2013 and 2014. I mostly volunteer around trans youth specifically.

Interview with Paulina Ashley Angel

Monika: Today it is my pleasure and honor to interview Paulina Ashley Angel, a transgender activist from USA, songwriter, musician, singer, producer, and blogger. Hello Paulina!

Paulina: Hola Monika, hella great to meet you!!

Monika: Could you say a few words about yourself?

Paulina: WOW, where should I start? I’m a 32-year-old Transwoman from the town of Indio, in California. I’m a songwriter/singer, multi-instrumentalist, student leader, LGBTQIA Rights Leader, and a dreamer. I'm the creator of the Facebook page, Trans Role Models, and its sister page, Trans Fund Raising. I have my own music company, P.A. Music, Inc.

Monika: You have written over 200 songs. Where do you get your music inspiration from?

Paulina: I’ve always had a knack for writing lyrics. Some songs are written just by coming up with a song title, or if a lyric pops into my head, and at times from real-life experiences, or dreams of experiences I can have in the future. The first song I wrote, The Rain (which can be heard on my first album), was actually based on a suicide letter I wrote during the summer of 1997, but I'm still alive and decided to make a song out of parts of it.