Interview with Nathalie Rettenbacher

Monika: Vienna, the beautiful capital of Austria, is the venue of today’s meeting with Nathalie Rettenbacher, an inspirational Austrian woman, comedian, and performer. Nathalie is a member of "Politically Correct Comedy Club" (PCCC*), Vienna's first queer comedy club, where she addresses her experiences as a trans woman in Austria. Hello Nathalie!

Nathalie: Hi Monika, what an honour to be part of your project and your blog. I think it is vitally important to gather and share positive stories about trans women. Thank you for doing that.

Monika: By the way, I love your orange hair. Is it your favourite colour?

Nathalie: Thank you so much! Orange has been my favourite colour for a long time I guess. I started dyeing my hair in that colour a few years ago and never looked back.

Interview with Kimberly Davis

Monika: Today I have the sheer pleasure of meeting Rebekah Kimberly Davis, the author of "Becoming Kimberly: A Transgender's Journey" (2021), a biographical book that covers different aspects of her transition. Hello Kimberly!

Kimberly: Hi Monika! Thank you for speaking with me today. It is a pleasure.

Monika: Could you say a few words about yourself?

Kimberly: I have always known something was different in me but being raised in the rural southern USA, I had to pretend to be someone else for most of my life. I was married twice and fathered three sons. My second marriage ended in 2016 with the death of my wife of 24 years. Her death freed me from a promise I made to her early in the marriage.

The first year Vikki and I were married, she discovered my girl clothes. The first thing on her mind was that I was having an affair. So, I made a full admission of my cross-dressing activities. Vikki, being an old hippie and survivor of the sexual revolution, did her level best to accept this and bring it out into our bedroom. She could not quite accept it.

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 Antonella Lerca Duda

Antonella Lerca Duda is a trailblazing Romanian transgender activist, author, and public figure whose work has reshaped the visibility and advocacy landscape for marginalized communities in Romania. A proud Roma transwoman, Antonella made history as the first transgender woman in Romania to run for public office, boldly standing up for the rights of women, sex workers, and the Roma community. After spending over a decade in Italy, where she began her transition and witnessed broader acceptance of trans identities, she returned to Romania determined to challenge deep-rooted transphobia and racism in her home country. Through social media, she has become a vital voice for the LGBTQ+ community, using her platform to share personal experiences and spark critical conversations. Her groundbreaking memoir, Sex Work Is Work, O Poveste Transgen (2020), not only sheds light on sex work but also offers a moving reflection on migration, identity, solidarity, and survival in the face of systemic oppression. Whether marching in the streets, advocating online, or building safe spaces for trans people, Antonella embodies resilience, pride, and fierce love for her community.

 

Monika: Hello Antonella! It’s such a pleasure to have you here. How are you today?

Antonella: Hello Monika! I’m doing well, thank you! I’ve been looking forward to our conversation. It’s always lovely to connect like this.

Monika: For those meeting you for the first time, how would you introduce yourself?

Antonella: I would like to greet all the readers of this fantastic blog. I am a Roma trans woman, the author of the book Sex Work Is Work, O Poveste Transgen (2020), and a human rights activist. I have been an activist for five years. Having spent 11 years in Italy, I could see that trans women are not represented in Romania, so I decided to come back to my home country and fight for the rights of my trans sisters and brothers. Since then, I have been trying to be visible and vocal everywhere in Romania, supporting the transgender Roma community and sex workers. Every step of this journey has been both challenging and deeply rewarding.

Interview with Lily Gist

Monika: Frida Kill is a Brooklyn-based intersectional feminist punk band. It consists of Lily Gist, Jeanette D. Moses, Maria Lina, and Gaby Canales. And today I am meeting Lily Gist to talk about her inspirations, being a trans artist, and her artistic perception of the world.

Hello Lily! You are a perfect example that punk rock is not dead!

Lily: Hi Monika! So are you, I just play loud music.

Monika: I always associate punk music with authenticity and equality. Is it difficult to achieve this with four strong-minded, charismatic ladies with different backgrounds and experiences?

Lily: We’re very different people from very different backgrounds. The other three don’t know what it’s like to be trans and I don’t know what it’s like to be Black, Hispanic, Jewish, from an immigrant family, or to have a pastor for a father. We all lead and support, fill multiple roles, different songs have different singers and we swap instruments often. Navigating each other’s differences can be complex work sometimes but we all have each other’s backs 100% and even when we argue or push each other’s buttons we listen and learn.

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.