Interview with Alicia Jane Ryder

Monika: Alicia Jane Ryder, an American trans activist and former US Government official, is my lovely guest today. Hello Alicia! Thank you for accepting my invitation.

Alicia: Hello Monika! Thank you for having me.

Monika: Could you say a few words about yourself?

Alicia: I am a 71-year-old transgender woman, completely transitioned through surgeries, 7 sessions, 57 hours total. Retired from Government service after 51 years total, 26 for the feds and the balance for the state of Oregon.

Monika: What inspired you to be an LGBT advocate?

Alicia: I and my wife are both transgender. Together for 25 years married one day after it became legal.

Interview with Philippa Ryder

Monika: Today I am going to talk to Philippa Ryder, an Irish civil servant, LGBTQ+ activist, author, and feminist. Over recent years, she has been a board member and chair of Transgender Equality Network Ireland (TENI) and part of the Steering Committee of Transgender Europe (TGEU). She was a founding committee member of Sporting Pride, Ireland’s LGBTQ+ sports organization. In 2019 she was one of the founders of Under the Rainbow where she is now Chief Operating Officer. She is also the chairwoman and director of Dublin Pride. Her memoir, My Name is Philippa, was published in 2020. Hello Philippa! Thank you for accepting my invitation.

Philippa: Thank you for the invitation, Monika. I’m delighted to take part.

Monika: You are a very busy lady. How do you manage to combine your professional work with activism?

Philippa: I retired from the Civil Service last year so that gave me more time to devote to activism which, in a few different fields, has always been part of my life. I seem to be drawn to committees unfortunately, I find it hard to say no when I see that something needs to be done.

Interview with Emily Green

Monika: The city of Glasgow is our next destination today where my guest lives. Emily Green is a Scottish transgender woman and blogger that documents her transition on social media. Hello Emily!

Emily: Hiya Monika thank you for having me!

Monika: Could you say a few words about yourself?

Emily: I'm 37 and I am a civil servant by job. I'm a massive wrestling fan and enjoy being a foodie and a small-batch coffee geek. I dabble with the odd ice hockey game and enjoy six nations rugby. I also blog about craft beers as Glasgow Beer Girl.

Monika: When I visit the UK, I usually drink Caffrey's, my favourite one, which is not a craft beer but still palatable to me. What is your favourite one?

Emily: I have a soft spot for the German lager Augustiner Helles. I love IPAs, stouts, and porters.

Interview with Lena Kuner

Monika: Today I am going to interview Lena Kuner, a German transgender woman, fashionista, travel blogger, and gamer that shares her transition story on social media. Hello Lena!

Lena: Hello Monika, it's a pleasure for me. Thank you!

Monika: Could you say a few words about yourself?

Lena: My name is Lena, and I'm 36 years old. I live in a small town in the German federal state of Saxony. I live there with my boyfriend and work as an archivist for our district administration.

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

Lena: Long story! *chuckles* I love the sound. I chose it a long time before my transition started. In video games I always had the nickname "Lalena".

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

Lena: Because I want to show that trans people are just as normal as everyone else. I don't want to be special or something. Maybe I'm a role model for somebody. If somebody feels better after reading my posts, I'm happy. And of course, I love modelling! *smiles*

Interview with Kamila

Kamila is a remarkable transgender woman whose journey from Poland to the UK is not only a personal transformation but a testament to her strength and resilience. A 34-year-old civil service employee, Kamila is also an outspoken transgender activist who has spent years advocating for the rights of transgender individuals both in Poland and beyond. She is deeply involved in the LGBTQ+ community, particularly through her work as a moderator of one of Poland's largest transgender support forums, transpomoc.pl. Kamila's story is one of courage, perseverance, and the relentless pursuit of happiness, and she continues to be a beacon of hope for many who are navigating their own transitions in Poland.

 

Monika: Today, I’m inviting you on a journey to the East Midlands region of England to chat with Kamila, a truly inspiring woman from Poland. Kamila is not only a transgender activist but also a successful business support analyst working in the British civil service. I’ll be discussing her experiences of living as a transgender woman in both Poland and the UK. Hello Kamila! Dzień dobry!

Kamila: Dzień dobry, Monika! First of all, I would like to thank you for your invitation to take part in this project. I'm humbled by your invitation. It’s always a pleasure to share my story and raise awareness about transgender issues.

Interview with Alexandra Chandler

Monika: Today I am hosting a very special woman. Alexandra Chandler is an American politician, lawyer, and former senior analyst at the Office of the Naval Intelligence. She is also an advocate for equality for LGBT people, especially transgender youth, immigrants, and people of color.

Currently, she holds the position of Policy Advocate at Protect Democracy, a nonpartisan nonprofit organization with an urgent mission: to prevent democracy from declining into a more authoritarian form of government.

In 2018, she took part in the Democratic Party primary, running for election to the U.S. House to represent Massachusetts' 3rd Congressional District. Alexandra is married to Catherine, her high school sweetheart, and they have two children. Hello Alexandra!

Alexandra: Hello Monika! So glad to virtually meet you and those reading, wherever they are and whenever they do! 

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

Alexandra: Relatively well, thank you. The truth is, we (speaking of our family) are very fortunate. My wife and I both have flexible (if intense this year!) and secure jobs that allow us to work from home and with some ability to reshuffle our hours around. We are both in good health with no major risk factors for COVID, as are our kids.

Yet that said, it is hard, as it is for all of us. There are so many moments where I feel I cannot be fully present as a mom or as a professional, because even with an amazing employer, there are times when I have to do both, with the addition of trying to be a halfway decent part-time elementary school teacher and IT support for my son doing remote school. I am also such an extroverted person, and I miss the in-person interaction with friends, I miss seeing bands in concert and dancing, I miss eating in restaurants.

Interview with Lucky Bradley

Monika: Today I am hosting Lucky Bradley, an American who has been an auditor at multiple governmental agencies, including the US Department of Defense. She is also a happy wife, and transgender woman that documents her transition on her blog ‘A Girl U Should Know’ and continues to be active on other social media. Before her transition, she had previously blogged on Accidentally Gay. She is also the co-author of Accidentally Gay: The True Love Story When a Wife Becomes a Husband. A book that detailed her experiences as a husband whose wife transitioned into her husband. Hello, Lucky!

Lucky: Hi Monika, It is great to meet you and be here.

Monika: Could you say a few words about yourself?

Lucky: I am a 49-year-old transgender woman married for 28 years to a fantastic transgender man. We live at home with our own little fur baby cat, Tally. I have been transitioning since mid-2018 and it has been a roller coaster. After a bunch of HRT level issues though I think I am at the halfway point of physical transition. I have worked in many governmental agencies as an auditor, and my hobbies include photography, gaming, writing, and other forms of storytelling.

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

Lucky: I have always shared my life online, since the early days of Myspace and LiveJournal. My sharing of my life became even more frequent when my husband transitioned in 2013.

Interview with Roxanne Manzone

There is a quiet courage in living authentically, and few women embody that courage more gracefully than Roxanne L. Manzone. A proud Ocala resident for over four decades, Roxanne’s journey is one of inner strength, steady resilience, and heartfelt conviction. After retiring from a long career in law enforcement, she found a second calling as a Roadway Inspector with the Florida Department of Transportation, navigating not just roads but the winding path toward becoming her true self. She transitioned at the age of 57, embracing womanhood not as a beginning or an end, but as a lifelong truth finally set free. Her story, once featured in The New York Times series “Transgender Today,” is not one of regret but of empowerment, a reminder that it is never too late to live in harmony with your soul. Roxanne’s life is filled with the kind of passions that reveal a tender and authentic heart: from displaying her beloved car at local shows, to volunteering weekly at a soup kitchen, to custom-painting model trains with the kind of care that only someone deeply attentive to beauty and detail can offer.

 

Her sense of responsibility to the transgender community is deeply rooted in visibility and hope. Through her testimony at legislative hearings and the quiet bravery of everyday conversations, Roxanne has become a local advocate, not for attention or applause, but to show the world that transgender people are neighbors, colleagues, and kind souls who simply want to live and be loved. Though she has faced painful losses, especially within her family, Roxanne remains grounded by strong friendships, supportive co-workers, and her cherished “transition buddy,” Cindy. She believes that being transgender is not about passing, it’s about peace. In a world where trans women are often expected to prove their womanhood, Roxanne stands firmly in her jeans, unbothered by trends or expectations, offering instead a model of self-acceptance, grace, and quiet pride. It is my honor to share this conversation with a woman whose strength speaks softly but echoes deeply.

Interview with Chloe Schwenke

Dr. Chloe Schwenke is a human rights and peacebuilding activist, development practitioner, and academic whose career spans more than three decades and four continents. Chloe is currently the Director of the Global Program on Violence, Rights, and Inclusion at the International Center for Research on Women, where she continues her lifelong mission of advancing justice, dignity, and equality. With over 15 years of professional experience based in the Global South, her work has taken her deep into the realities of international development, conflict transformation, and advocacy for marginalized communities. Chloe’s professional life reflects a rare combination of intellectual rigor and lived experience. She has worked as a senior policy advisor, consultant, and professor, bringing a unique perspective to the intersections of gender, governance, and human rights. Her journey has also been marked by personal courage: coming out as a transgender woman later in life, navigating painful professional setbacks, and ultimately emerging as one of the first four openly transgender appointees in the U.S. government under President Barack Obama. 

Interview with Heli Hämäläinen

Monika: Today it is my pleasure and honour to interview Heli Hämäläinen, a married woman from Helsinki, Finland, Senior Customs Officer in Finnish Customs, and a father. Hello Heli!

Heli: Hello Monika, it is my pleasure to meet you.

Monika: Could you say a few words about yourself?

Heli: I am soon 51 years old. I have worked most of my career as a public servant. I graduated in 1991 from the Helsinki School of Economics which is nowadays a part of Aalto University. I got married in 1996 in Keuruu Church, which was built in 1892. I am Evangelical Lutheran. My daughter was born in 2002.

In the Autumn of 2004, I felt that I could no longer suppress my female identity. My life was awful because even the advertisements at bus stops reminded me of my gender. I couldn’t read women’s magazines.

My wife gave me the advice to seek professional help and I did. A referral was written to official transsexuality investigations in November 2004 and I met the psychiatrist in February 2005. I was diagnosed as transsexual in April 2006 and I changed my forename in June 2006.

Interview with Robyn Alice McCutcheon

Monika: Today it is my pleasure and honor to interview Robyn Ann Jane Alice McCutcheon, an inspirational American woman, diplomat (Foreign Service Officer -- FSO) who has served at U.S. embassies in Uzbekistan, Russia, Romania, author of a number of publications on Russian and Soviet history, a former engineer on NASA projects including Hubble Space Telescope, author of a web journal titled Transgender in State. This year she is working at the U.S. State Department in Washington, DC, where she also serves as president of GLIFAA, the LGBT+ pride association for U.S. foreign affairs' agencies. Hello Robyn!

Robyn: Hi, Monika! I've enjoyed your profiles of transgender heroines, many of whom are my personal heroines. It's quite an honor that you would want to include me in that number!

Monika: Could you say a few words about yourself?
Robyn: Well, I'm 59 going on 29, divorced, and happier and more excited about the world than I've ever been. I come from a Scotch-Irish family but fell in love with the Russian language and "things Russian" when I was in the university.
I grew up in the 60s in the early days of the space program. That's how it is that I ended up with two careers: 25 years of working on NASA projects and now 10 years of working for the U.S. Department of State as a Foreign Service Officer.