Monika: Are there trans figures from history or broader communities who have also influenced your journey?
Dane: There are Marsha P. Johnson, Sylvia Rivera, and Miss Major. There are the trans ancestors called by many names in many cultures, whose sacrifices, stories, and bravery in honoring their spiritual selves move me every day to continue being me and fighting for others to be able to be themselves. The number of trans sisters I love and respect expands at every moment, thanks to social media and the platform I have created. We are so incredible, and I am blessed to be living at this time, at this moment.
Monika: Looking back at your journey, what was the most difficult part of coming out for you?
Monika: Looking back at your journey, what was the most difficult part of coming out for you?
Dane: Learning to love myself meant learning how to cut ties, learning how to divest myself from structural oppression, and learning to understand that the pain I suffered at the hands of those who said I shouldn’t be me was not because I deserved it.
Monika: Beyond your personal growth, what has been the hardest part of living openly as yourself?
Dane: The hardest thing is the desire to wake everyone up to the evils of white supremacy while knowing that I will never be able to save everyone. By virtue of my intersections, there are people I am fighting to free who would rather see me eradicated from the face of the Earth. While I stand in solidarity with those who stand in solidarity with me, I also know that when dismantling structural oppression some people who don’t like you are bound to get free too, just because.
Monika: How would you describe the current situation for transgender women in American society?
Monika: How would you describe the current situation for transgender women in American society?
Dane: I will say this. America has a lot of deaths to atone for, and many people have to answer for them. It is still legal to discriminate against trans people in over thirty states in the United States, and on top of that, the country has yet to fully acknowledge or take responsibility for its own role in creating these conditions.
Monika: What broader societal issues do you think contribute to the challenges trans people face today?
Dane: Our country is built on the genocide of indigenous people, anti-blackness, slavery, and the power of privileged white cis men, and these systems continue to poison America’s veins. We are in a global state of emergency. Trans people are being killed all over the world, and we, the people, cannot be lax in calling out governments and holding them accountable for the blood on their hands.
Monika: Often the transgender cause is grouped within the larger LGBT community. Do you feel that the transgender community is able to advance its own issues and have its own voice within the broader movement?
Monika: Often the transgender cause is grouped within the larger LGBT community. Do you feel that the transgender community is able to advance its own issues and have its own voice within the broader movement?
Dane: I actually want to take the T out of the acronym and have us realize that while some trans people are L, G, or B, not all LGB people are trans. Because structural oppression privileges cisness, trans people are often erased and silenced. The modern LGBTQ movement was founded on the backs of trans women of color, and they are erased constantly. Just because you are LGBTQ, it doesn't mean you can't be racist or misogynist.
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Monika: Do you take part in any lobbying or political advocacy, and do you think transgender women can make a meaningful impact in politics?
Dane: I don't, but we can. And “Your oppressor will never save you.” I live in DC, where we have some of the best legislation protecting trans people's rights, and yet I am still discriminated against often. The government is not set up to care about any of us. Look at our Congress. When the government wants to hold itself accountable for its hands in our deaths, then we can have a conversation.
Monika: Fashion is an important form of self-expression for many people. How would you describe your personal style, and are there particular colors, designs, or trends that you enjoy wearing?
Dane: I do like fashion. My style changes from time to time. I am not really big into name-brand things. I am currently feeling red dresses. I see myself in something red, and I go in.
Monika: How would you describe the role of love in your life, and what does it mean to you personally?
Dane: Love is eternity, and love is my salvation. Without love, I would be in my grave, but love without healing is sometimes a fool's errand, and love without accountability isn't love at all. I love myself, my mother loves me, and my cis and trans sisters as well as my community love me. It is that love that really helps me to wake up every day.
Monika: How does your focus on love connect to your interest in healing and personal growth?
Dane: I try to be as loving as I possibly can because love has the power to shift worlds. I am deeply interested in healing because being healed allows us not only to recognize love but also to bathe ourselves in its truth and radiate it outward.
Monika: Many transgender women write memoirs. Have you ever considered writing one yourself, or do you approach storytelling differently?
Monika: Many transgender women write memoirs. Have you ever considered writing one yourself, or do you approach storytelling differently?
Dane: Nope. I love the memoirs that are out there. I feel like so many publishing houses are only interested in memoirs, and for me personally, I see this as another way the cis lens invades our lives and attempts to control our narratives. We are writers; we have fiction stories dripping from our pens and poetry birthed on our tongues. So many trans writers of fiction and poetry exist, and the work is incredible.
Monika: How do you see your own creative work fitting into the broader landscape of trans literature and art?
Dane: Personally, I am too young to write a memoir, maybe when I am fifty. I have a lot more living to do, and fiction and poetry were part of the art that helped to save my life. There is room for both the memoir and the work of fiction. We have to start celebrating our amazing trans creatives who are birthing new worlds and etching new possibilities.
Monika: Are you currently working on any new projects, and can you tell us more about what you have in progress?
Dane: I am! I am coming out with an EP at the end of the year. We are now raising money to record the live concept album for me and Andrew Morrissey's musical Roaring, which is about a trans woman star in the 1920s. I am also part of the Hothouse13 Development Playwriting series, and my piece Absalom will be presented as a reading there in October. Additionally, I am completing Keeper, which is Book 2 in The Ghetto Goddess Series.
Monika: What advice would you give to transgender girls who are struggling with gender dysphoria and self-acceptance?
Dane: Get yourself some friends who love you and who are invested in lifting you up when you are down, and be that kind of friend to yourself and to others. If you don't have them, Instagram me. I will help celebrate you, honey. Beauty comes in many shapes, forms, and beings, and you are the inheritor of a rich legacy. You are the hope for generations to come. Remember, you are everything, and you are more than enough.
Monika: Dane, thank you so much for sharing your time and wisdom with us today!
END OF PART 2
All photos: courtesy of Lady Dane Figueroa Edidi.
© 2015 - Monika Kowalska
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