Interview with Basilia Loren

Monika: The sunny state of California is our next destination today where I am meeting a lovely guest. Basilia Loren is an American transgender activist and the author of "Secret Tear - Beginning stage of life" (2020). Hello Basilia! Thank you for accepting my invitation!

Basilia: You are very welcome Monika! It surely is a pleasure, thank you for having me.

Monika: Could you say a few words about yourself?

Basilia: I'm more than happy to say a few words about myself, Monika. My name is Basilia Loren aka Silia Loren. I consider myself a strong and proud Transwoman, a spiritual being who strongly believes in the power of prayers! I was born in Stockton, California on July 4th, 1957. That said, makes me 65 years of age.

As far as my journey as a transwoman, I officially transitioned on June 20, 1983, and became post-op in September 1993. In those days keeping stealth was keeping safe. So I kept stealth until 2003 when I was introduced to the transgender community by Angela Burgess, unfortunately, she crossed the rainbow a few years back. This is when I heard the word, “Transgender” and other terms within the LGBTQ+ community that I was completely unaware of its existence.

Interview with Jessie McGrath

Monika: You do not like lawyers? Please do not go away because today I have invited a nice lawyer and an amazing woman. Jessie McGrath has been a prosecutor with the Los Angeles County District Attorney’s Office since 1988. Her areas of expertise include consumer protection, cyber-crime, narcotics, and juvenile law. She has been lead counsel or co-counsel in consumer protection cases against Apple, Uber, Sony BMG, Choice Point, Honda of Santa Monica, McKenna BMW, and Gunderson Chevrolet. In April 2002 she was named Deputy District Attorney of the Month. Ms. McGrath has served on the Board of Directors and was Executive Vice President of the Association of Deputy District Attorneys, the union representing the more than 900 rank and file prosecutors of the Los Angeles County District Attorney’s Office. She is the happy parent of five children, three of whom will be lawyers too. Hello Jessie!

Jessie: Hi Monika. Thank you so much for reaching out to me and asking me to participate in your amazing work.

Interview with Saigon Le

Monika: Today I have invited Saigon Le, a Vietnamese-born former model, actress, and now aesthetics nurse from the sunny state of California, USA. We will talk about her amazing life experiences and challenges related to her transition. Hello Sai!

Sai: Hi Monika it’s a pleasure to be a part of this so thank you for recognizing your fellow sisters.

Monika: Could you say a few words about yourself?

Sai: My name is Saigon, I am a transgender female from California. I’m the youngest of nine children but I feel because of my unique circumstances l have the oldest soul.

Monika: You can boast over 10 years of experience as a nurse. Why did you decide to become a nurse?

Sai: Well, first I’d like to emphasize that this career was not born out of self-belief. I had a very troubled upbringing and was on my own at age 17, I found a “tribe” of drag queens and queer club kids that performed at club ARENA and hung out, performed as well as lived together. I wasn’t very good on stage but I was just happy to be there. There was an electrifying and talented performer named Barbarella, she and I became very close. She was my drag mother and taught me how to wear eyelashes, corsets, and wigs.

Interview with Aliyah Tam Casari

Monika: Today we are going to the sunny state of California where my guest is living. I would like to introduce to you Aliyah Tam Casari, a U.S. Air Force veteran and air traffic control instructor that shares her story on social media. Aliyah and I are going to talk about being trans and the challenges related to her fascinating journey towards womanhood. Hello Aliyah!

Aliyah: Hello Monica! Thank you for inviting me to your interview and I’m very happy to be here and share my life story.

Monika: Could you say a few words about yourself?

Aliyah: I was born in 1965 in a small town called Hazleton, Pennsylvania. Around the age of eight years, I realized something was different about myself. I was interested in playing with the girls and doing things all girls do. Thus, there’s a whole story in between up until the age of about 52 that I began my transition as a transgender female.

Interview with Kara

Monika: Today I am going to host Kara, a young comedian, transgender activist, and social media influencer from Los Angeles, California. You can find her on Instagram @karageous. Hello Kara!

Kara: Hello, Monika! Thank you so much for this wonderful opportunity. I look forward to sharing with you my journey. 

Monika: Could you say a few words about yourself?

Kara: Gladly! I am a queer, trans, Taiwanese-American activist. I graduated from UCLA in 2016 and am originally from Sugar Land, Texas. When I'm not doing comedy or motivational speaking, I work full-time serving homeless LGBTQ youth.

Monika: What inspired you to share your intimate life moments via social media?

Kara: I endeavor to be the hero I didn't have growing up. As a queer kid living in Texas, I never felt seen. There was a stark lack of visibility, and no one was telling my story. Social media gave me a platform to amplify my voice. There are so many misconceptions about the trans community - a fear that stems from a lack of education or exposure.

Interview with Ella Baker

Monika: Today I have invited Ella Baker, a Korean-American model, poet, Zen student in the Kwan Um School of Zen, and transgender woman that documents her transition on social media. Hello Ella!

Ella: 안녕! Hi! Thanks so much for having me!

Monika: Could you say a few words about yourself?

Ella: I’m a second-generation Korean American and a queer transgender woman of faith. I manage college programs for high schools throughout California and am finishing my Doctorate in Education at the University of Southern California this year. My research specialty is in belonging and how a sense of belonging impacts academic, psychological, and social outcomes. My dissertation specifically focuses on transgender college students and I’m hoping to provide colleges with student-centered data to improve their climates and policies.

Interview with Adriana Roberts

Monika: Today I am going to interview Adriana Roberts, an American performer, DJ, event producer, and model. She is the founder and Queen Mother of Bootie Mashup, a nightlife and music brand dedicated to the art form of the pop mashup, producing theme parties and live streams. Hello Adriana!

Adriana: Hello Monika!

Monika: Could you say a few words about yourself?

Adriana: Sassy, smart, and sexy. There, that’s a few.

Monika: Adriana is a nice name. Why did you choose it?

Adriana: How do you know I wasn’t born with it? Actually, the name is a variation of a character’s name from the 1981 cult film “Liquid Sky.” 

Monika: I always wanted to have dreadlocks like you. How long have you been wearing them?

Adriana: After Burning Man 2003, my hair was already dreading, from all the dust storms that year out in the desert. Rather than deal with untangling it, my stylist suggested I just go all the way with it (but with better salon care, of course). And the rest is history. I’ve had dreadlocks ever since.

Interview with Kimberly Kennedy

Monika: Today’s interview will be with Kimberly Kennedy, an American transgender woman and social media influencer from San Francisco, California. Hello Kimberly! 

Kimberly: Hi there, I'm really surprised and honored that someone would want to interview me.

Monika: Could you say a few words about yourself?

Kimberly: I am a 23-year-old transgender woman. I started my transition in my senior year of college. So it's been about 2 years so far.

Monika: Why did you decide to share your transition details on social media?

Kimberly: There are many reasons I have been sharing my story on Reddit. First I wanted to share my details on Reddit because I love the thriving communities that exist on the platform. In regards to why I wanted to share my personal story, I really think it's good for trans people, specifically the younger trans kids to see that life can be OK for a trans person in America. I think that many trans people my age were only exposed to the idea of a transgender through trashy daytime TV, like the Jerry Springer show or other things that were posed as more of a "freak show".

Interview with Cameron Laventure

Monika: Today I would like to invite you for a meeting with a talented woman who writes and directs her own movies. Cameron Laventure is an independent filmmaker and writer wi­th an MFA from NYU Tisch School of the Arts. Hello Cameron!

Cameron: Hi, Monika! Thanks for speaking with me today.

Monika: How are you holding up in the pandemic times?

Cameron: Quarantine has been hard, but I’ve been luckier than most. My brother Brandon and I co-write and co-direct all our projects, and fortunately, we’ve been able to shelter at home, building a writing portfolio while we search for paid screenwriting work.

It breaks my heart that so many people in my country, including relatives and dear friends, aren’t so lucky. So many of us are exposed to senseless risk because our government won’t just pay us to stay home. I carry a lot of anger over that. I try to channel it into my art, and into activism when I can.

Interview with Nicola Nilla

Monika: Today I am meeting Nicola Nilla, an American YouTube vlogger. It has been almost 16 months since she launched her Nicola Nilla vlog where she shares her transition Story. Hello Nicola!

Nicola: Hi Monika! I can't believe it's already been 16 months since this all started.

Monika: Could you say a few words about yourself?

Nicola: Yeah! I am a 27-year-old transwoman from San Francisco with a background in education. However, I like to dabble in a lot of different things like fashion styling, MUA, modeling, and photography. I like anything that allows me to express my true self!

Monika: Nicola is such a lovely name. How come you chose it?

Nicola: So it's kind of a funny story. My birth initials are NBL, and I wanted to keep those the same during the name change -- mostly out of simplicity but to also respect my parents. I already knew I wanted a unique "N" name when I was watching one of my favorite 2000s teen movies, Superbad. The side character, McLovin, spends half the movie obsessing over this girl he barely knows, Nicola. She really only represents that hot girl every guy wants to hook up with, and I thought that was badass so I took that name for myself haha! It's kind of a weird inspiration, but it stuck hehe.

Interview with Robin Diane Goldstein

Monika: Today it is my pleasure and honor to interview Robin Diane Goldstein, an American transgender rights activist, former talk-radio host and stand up comedian, blogger, former Senior Engineering Manager, former Principal Counsel, and currently Senior Manager of Health Special Projects at Apple Inc. in Cupertino, California. Hello Robin! 

Robin: Hi Monika. Greetings from the heart of the Silicon Valley.

Monika: Could you say a few words about yourself?

Robin: When I started as a talk radio host I described myself as a “Straight, White, Buddhist, Vegetarian, Lesbian Fraternity Boy trapped in the body of a Recovering Transexual Woman Patent Attorney with a Bizarre Sense of Humor and a Master’s Degree in City Planning.” Add in the fact that I make a great New York Style Cheesecake, and I think you’ve got me pretty much figured out.

Interview with Aleana Robins

Monika: Today it is my pleasure and honor to interview Aleana Robins, a former skier, grave digger, performance car driver, small business owner, farmer, artist, radio announcer, blogger, parent of 7 children from Riverside, California, and the author of the biographical book titled “The Shadow of Ally” (2016). She lives in Launceston, a city in the north of Tasmania, Australia. Hello Aleana!
Aleana: Hello and thank you for taking the time. I promise you can ask anything but I will not promise you will like my answer (smiles). Though I would love to say that the start of my journey began in California but I have lived all over the western side of the US. I moved to Australia in 2002 to be with my former spouse.
Monika: Could you say a few words about yourself? The number of your talents and jobs is really awesome …
Aleana: I grew up in a middle-income family with a mother who did not know how to care and a father who was lost in his battles with PTSD from Vietnam. I think in some ways my teenage years while dysfunctional was also a place where I gained so many talents. I have enjoyed playing several musical instruments learned to have a love for music and the arts that have only grown in age. I love skiing and the sound of fresh powder under my skies. I am a proud parent of seven children, I know people think wow a breeder, lol. But I would not change their love and the experiences that come with them in my life for all the Tea in China.

Interview with Karen Adell Scot

Monika: Today it is my pleasure and honor to interview Karen Adell Scot. Miss Scot is a very diverse woman. She is an award-winning California high school science teacher, a movie producer, and screenwriter of feature films, a former Major in the military, a law enforcement officer, and recently a beauty queen. Hello Karen Adell!

Karen Adell: Hi there Monika!

Monika: Could you say a few words about yourself?

Karen Adell: Thank you so much for interviewing me. It is an honor to share a little bit of my life with your readers.

Monika: You hit the headlines in December 2014 when the American media covered your coming-out story. Were you satisfied with the way the media covered your transition? 

Karen Adell: Absolutely not. I was outed against my will on the front pages of many newspapers, on over twenty local news broadcasts and then was outed on all the major American national news broadcasts and went viral on the net. Many stories used male pronouns and then allowed comments where others called me a “thing” and “it” even calling for me to die as some sort of filthy piece of garbage. Some stories about me were so bad other news stories were written using my example of how NOT to write about transgender women.

Interview with Victory “Vi” Lê

Monika: Today it is my pleasure and honor to interview Victory “Vi” Lê, an American Student from San Francisco, singer, performer, one of five transgender women presented in Cecilio Asuncion’s documentary “What’s the T?”. Hello Vi!

Vi: Hello Monika! What a pleasure and honor it is to be interviewed by you. I hope you’re doing well.

Monika: Could you say a few words about yourself?

Vi: Well, to start off, I am a proud Transgender woman here in beautiful San Francisco, CA. I’m currently a student, finishing up my psychology degree. I also work at DPH(Department of Public Health) and AsiaSF, a restaurant that employs transgender women waitresses/hostesses who are also showgirls; where we all serve and entertain in a dinner PG-13 cabaret/show. I am their only live singer at the moment, and I’m blessed to be able to call the girls who I work with, family.

Interview with Lora G

Monika: Today it is my pleasure and honor to interview Lora G, a Hollywood, California - based composer, guitarist, and keyboardist, co-founder of Lunden Reign. Hello Lora G!

Lora G: Hi Monika, thank you for reaching out to me.

Monika: When did you decide that music would be your way of life?

Lora G: I started performing at the age of 13 in Orange County, California. By 16 I started performing on the Sunset Strip scene in Hollywood. The amazing Matt Sorum (Velvet Revolver, Guns N’ Roses, The Cult) was my drummer in high school. By 18, I had the luck to be involved in finding guitar sounds for Stevie Wonder’s album “Secret Life of Plants.”

However, at 19 I left music to go to college. I didn’t return to music until after an amazing Emmy-winning career in television and radio including working for Disney for over 14 years. I returned to music about 7 years ago after realizing how much I missed it.

Interview with Marissa Martinez

Monika: Today it is my pleasure and honor to interview Marissa Martinez, a talented woman and guitarist/vocalist for a California metal band called Cretin. Hello Marissa! 

Marissa: Hi!

Monika: First of all, I would like to congratulate you on your marriage! How did it feel to be the beautiful bride?

Marissa: Thank you! It was really nerve-racking until the ceremony actually started. Typically, I dress really casually, and I don’t have a big interest in clothing and fashion. So, the whole process of dress shopping, shoe shopping, deciding on hair and makeup. I found it all overwhelming. It’s just not my thing. I was really excited to be married to my husband. Just not so much for the wedding itself. Hahaha!

Monika: Any plans for the honeymoon?

Marissa: We just got back from our honeymoon. We went to Yosemite, which is where we got engaged.

Interview with Vicki Estrada

Monika: Today it is my pleasure and honor to interview Vicki Estrada, a landscape architect, urban planner, civic visionary, the President of Estrada Land Planning, a landscape architecture firm from San Diego. Hello Vicki!

Vicki: Hello Monika. I am quite honored that I am one you chose to interview. By the way, thank you for all you do for our community throughout the world.

Monika: Could you say a few words about your professional career so far?
Vicki: Well, I have owned my own design firm now for 29 years, almost half of my 61 years. I currently have 8 employees. Growing up I wanted to be an architect but realized while in architecture school that what makes a city great is not an iconic building here or tower there. It is what happens between buildings, how the buildings are arranged, that makes cities great. This is what landscape architects do.
There is misunderstanding by most that because the word "landscape architect" has the work "landscape" in it, that we are "fancy" gardeners. It is much more far reaching than that. I heard a story once by a famous landscape architect that if you imagine the earth as a canvas, architects put dots on the map, engineers connect the dots but landscape architects are the only ones that can literally paint the entire canvas.
I never forgot that story and have never regretted my decision to change from being an architect to being a landscape architect. We seem to be much more open and able to think on a larger scale.

Interview with Isley Reust

Monika: Today’s interview will be with Isley Reust, a young American video blogger from California that documents her transition on YouTube. Isley is a traveler and adventurer, picture taker, video maker and producer, and social media celebrity. She is known for her participation in the True Trans with Laura Jane Grace doc-series and her Spectacular Spectacular band. Hello Isley!

Isley: Hi Monika!

Monika: Could you say a few words about yourself?

Isley: I'm German, I play guitar in a new band called Spectacular Spectacular. We have almost finished recording our debut record. I do photography on the side and I'm also a active video blogger.

Monika: Why did you decide to share your transition details on YouTube?

Isley: I wanted to help and inspire others and let them know it's okay to be yourself and that once you do take that step you'll be that much happier and you'll love yourself for who you really are. I'm not going to say it's an easy road but it's definitely worth the struggle in the end.

Interview with Katie Anne Holton

Monika: Today it is my pleasure and honor to interview Katie Anne Holton, an American photo model, and transgender advocate. Hello Katie!

Katie: Hi Monika. Thanks for contacting me. I’m honored. My girlfriend laughed when I told her that she’s now dating a model.

Monika: How did you get involved with "Visible Bodies: Transgender Narratives Retold" photography series?

Katie: Scott Duane is a dear friend, so when he asked if I wanted to participate, I jumped at the chance. I believe in the goal of Visible Bodies, to let trans people tell their own stories. And, let’s be honest, being asked to model is very good for my 50-year-old ego.

Interview with Brooke Sullivan

Monika: Today’s interview will be with Brooke Sullivan, a young American transgender woman and HIV activist from California. In addition, she is a video blogger that documents her transition on YouTube. Hello Brooke!

Brooke: Hello Monika!

Monika: Could you say a few words about yourself?

Brooke: I am a 28-year pre-op female transsexual living in beautiful San Diego, Ca. I currently work as the Communications and Consumer Marketing Manager for a start-up telemedical company called EXUSMED.

Some of my passions in life are volunteering with non-profits/non-profit events, making music, and creating digital art. I like to think I am a jack of all trades and master of some. 
Monika: Why did you decide to share your transition details on YouTube? 
Brooke: I felt compelled to share who I was with others, I have always been that way. I thought my story might empower others, as it has also empowered me by exposing myself to the world. When you find yourself and work towards an end goal, it gives you a sense of pride. I wanted to share that with the world. I also wanted to find solidarity…and posting a timeline video seemed like a good way to achieve it.