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 Christie De Vries

Monika: Today it is my pleasure and honor to interview Christie De Vries, an Australian writer, former nurse, showgirl, the author of the biographical book titled “Down the Rabbit Hole...: An Autobiography by Christie De Vries” (2015). Hello Christie!

Christie: Hi Monika! So lovely to meet you. Must say I'm chuffed that you contacted me from Poland!

Monika: Could you say a few words about yourself?

Christie: Hmmm, I guess I'm just like everyone, trying to find sense in a very crazy world. I try not to watch too much news, the events in the world are just overwhelming. Being Transgender certainly isn't an easy life path to choose. There seems to be more tolerance to transgender children these days and that's wonderful.

It was a difficult journey and I wouldn't want to ever have to go through all that again! These days, I enjoy writing, spending time with my dog Jess and see a few select friends. I love the beauty of nature and flowers.

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 Kelly Star

Monika: Today it is my pleasure and honor to interview Kelly Star, an Australian model, and celebrity. Hello Kelly!

Kelly: Hello Monika!

Monika: Could you say a few words about yourself?

Kelly: I am strong, passionate, and driven with an aura of kindness. I am also compassionate to all living creatures living a Vegan lifestyle, which I believe keeps me looking young and radiating love all the time.

Monika: You hit the headlines in March 2015 when the American and Australian media presented you as a woman who claimed to have the “Largest Boobs in Australia.” Does the media attention help you with your career?

Kelly: Yes, by exposing myself (in more ways than one) I am hoping to further my career. It is a risk I am taking right now.

Interview with Michelle Diamond

Monika: Today it is my pleasure and honor to interview Michelle Diamond, an Australian transgender activist, and the first-ever Transgender Goal umpire for Australian Rules Football, making history for the trans community in Australia. Hello Michelle!

Michelle: Hello Monika, thank you for this opportunity.

Monika: Could you say a few words about yourself?

Michelle: Well for starters I am a pre-op transsexual who has been transitioning for about 4 years now, been an activist for most of those years until I retired at the end of 2012 to follow my dreams. I ended up following my dreams and wanted to get involved in Australian Rules Football as a goal umpire and so I trained hard and worked on it to make sure I achieved my goals and make my dreams a reality, on the 26th of April 2014 I made history by becoming the first-ever transwoman to become a goal umpire here in Australia.

Interview with Kathy Anne Noble

Monika: Today it is my pleasure and honor to interview Kathy Anne Noble, a transgender activist from Australia, the founder, and president of Agender Australia, and Changeling Aspects, a support group for transgender people located in Brisbane and Australia. The author of “Two Lives: A Transsexual's Story and the Fight for Recognition" (2011) now out of print. Hello Kathy!

Kathy: Hi Monika, good to catch up at last.

Monika: Could you say a few words about yourself?

Kathy: Oh dear, that is rather a problem, as I have done so much in my nearly 80 years. I was born in London, lived through the Blitz, married twice, to sisters, served 2 years of National Service in the RAF. Spent most of my working life in the financial field, as a financial advisor both in the UK and Australia.

I Moved to Australia in 1980 and became a Citizen in 1988. I have 4 kids from both marriages still living, 7 grandkids and 8 Great grandkids. My kids are spread across the world, in Australia, the UK, and America. I finally transitioned in November 2001 on the Gold Coast, 45 minutes South of Brisbane. This year sees my 13th birthday as Kathy. Both of my wives are now deceased, and I miss them both.