Interview with Lady Dane Figueroa Edidi

Monika: Today it is my pleasure and honor to interview Lady Dane Figueroa Edidi, a Nigerian, Cuban Indigenous American actress, singer, dancer, writer, radio host, oracle, healer, and teacher, the first trans woman of color in Washington DC to publish a work of fiction, a member of the leadership team of Trans Women of Color Collective, listed in the 2015 Trans 100, a group of trans people honored for their work on trans issues in the United States and having a positive impact. Hello Dane!

Dane: Hi Monika, How are you? 

Monika: I am fine, thank you. You are a woman of so many talents! Let’s start with one of your blessings, namely, singing. You are dubbed the Ancient Jazz Priestess of Mother Africa … 
Dane: I am, I was given that title a while ago when I was very young, and a powerful medium was reading my aura as I performed. He said, “You are a priestess of Mother Africa”.

Interview with Crista Lynn

Monika: Today it is my pleasure and honor to interview Crista Lynn, a video blogger that documents her transition on YouTube. Hello Crista!

Crista: Hello all!

Monika: Could you say a few words about yourself?

Crista: Well, I like to think that I’m a pretty normal person, except when I’m going thru one of my crazy spells. When I’m not getting into trouble, I’m usually a quiet, outdoors adventurer, found swimming at the bottom of some waterfall, out in the desert, catching new pet lizards, at home doing some arts and craft project, or sleeping after a hard days work.

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

Crista: Well, because I was bored, and had just finished writing my memoir “When Fantasies Are Fulfilled”, and was looking for a way to promote my work, which is STILL in the never-ending process of being published. What a nightmare! But, I was just looking for a way to bring my story to life and get it out there ahead of being published on paper, and I guess I was also just looking for attention, as usual.

Interview with Elle Bradford

Monika: Today it is my pleasure and honor to interview Elle Bradford, an inspirational young model from the USA, fashionista, and video blogger that documents her transition on YouTube. Hello Elle!

Elle: Hello Monika!

Monika: Could you say a few words about yourself?
Elle: Well, I am a young trans woman living in New York City pursuing a career in fashion. I live with my boyfriend of seven years and our son (d0g) Isaac. Life is good.
Monika: I am a big fan of your vlog. Why did you decide to share your transition details on YouTube?
Elle: I felt that the time was right. I have been stealth for a few years now and never have I been as compelled to share my story as in this moment in time. There is an incredible amount of support for trans people in the world right now and I thought in sharing my story I could present another “version” of trans to the general public. In order to teach them that we are all different, just like everyone else.

Interview with Pauline Park

Monika: Today it is my pleasure and honor to interview Pauline Park, a human rights activist, transgender advocate, the chair of the New York Association for Gender Rights Advocacy (NYAGRA), president of the board of directors as well as former executive director of Queens Pride House, co-founder of Iban/Queer Koreans of New York, named to a list of 'The 2012 Most Influential LGBT Asian Icons' and '50 Transgender Icons' for Transgender Day of Remembrance 2012. Hello Pauline!

Pauline: Hello, Monika!

Monika: Your life is very extraordinary. You are a Korean-American adoptee…
Pauline: Yes, I was born in Korea and adopted by European American parents, and raised in Milwaukee (Wisconsin). You might be surprised by some things we have in common; you're Polish, and I grew up on the south side of Milwaukee, which is predominantly German and Polish Catholic (it was even more so when I was growing up there in the 1960s and 1970s). I grew up eating kielbasa and punchki as well as sauerkraut -- which is like a bland, non-spicy German version of kimchi~!

Interview with Jennell Jaquays

Monika: Today it is my pleasure and honor to interview Jennell Jaquays, an American designer of role-playing games (RPGs) and video games, known for the Dungeons & Dragons modules “Dark Tower” and “Caverns of Thracia” for Judges Guild. Hello Jennell!

Jennell: Hi Monika. Thank you for letting me share a bit about myself and my story. 

Monika: Could you say a few words about yourself?

Jennell: Well in a FEW words, I’m an artist and game developer who late in life accepted that she was ALSO transgender. I was born and lived most of my early life in the American Midwest (near the Great Lakes) and had a not too unusual childhood. For the most part, sports didn’t interest me (I became a baseball fan one year that the Detroit baseball team, the Tigers, won the world series), but I was very much into comic books of all sorts, and drawing, and building imaginary worlds with my younger brother. I had (still have) a younger brother and sister. We moved just about every three years and friendship relationships rarely outlasted the moves so my brother ended up being my best friend as well. Until I was in high school, most of our adventures were shared with each other.

Interview with Micheline Montreuil

Monika: Today it is my pleasure and honor to interview Micheline Anne Hélène Montreuil, a Quebec lawyer, teacher, writer, radio host, trade unionist, and politician from Canada. Hello Micheline!

Micheline: Hello Monika; how are you today?

Monika: I am fine, thank you. Could you say a few words about yourself?

Micheline: Well I could say that I am just an ordinary girl, but being also at the same time a little bit special because I am a transgender. Otherwise, on a professional level, I am just a lawyer, a professor of law, management, and ethics at university, a writer, and a lecturer.

Monika: You made yourself known with your struggles for transgender rights in Canada. Could you elaborate on some of your initiatives in this respect? 

Micheline: My first initiatives were about my name. I wished only to add the first name Micheline to my birth certificate to allow me to have a driver’s license under the name of Micheline Montreuil but unfortunately, the Registrar of civil status denied me this right.