A big thank you to Coline, who introduced me (well, she didn't actually introduce us - she told me about her ... you get it) to Paris Lees, a journalist who is also trans.
It seems clear to me, listening to her and watching her in the interview below, Paris could have melted into the background after transition, maybe not right away, but certainly now. Instead, she chose to be a very public person; leaving herself vulnerable to the sort of situations that just won't allow her past to go away. As a journalist, she is helping to shift the ground, making it harder for stereotypes to dominate the narrative.
Every life is different and, so, I found it very interesting listening to this interview. She is so much younger than I, but the parallels are quite amazing, as are the differences. Most of all it was refreshing to listen as two obviously intelligent people conversed about one woman growing up trans in Britain.
This video is much too long for a transcript, so thankfully, if English is not your mother tongue, there is a closed caption option included. If the embedded video won't work, try this link.
Every time I've seen her on television she is very articulate, very knowledgeable, opinionated (you have to be when you do Question Time and Newsnight) and a strong person. She is an incredible role model for younger trans people.
ReplyDeleteYes, she could have just disappeared but she didn't. The same goes for a lot of us. If we're lucky we can blend in and could just disappear, but if we do that then people get to pretend we don't exist, but we also leave younger trans people without role models to look to.
"... but if we do that then people get to pretend we don't exist, ..."
DeleteI know that blending in isn't an option for me, but standing up on a soapbox telling the world who I am isn't my way. I'm waiting for serendipity to step in. Hopefully I can be a role model, and live my life too, as she does.
Thanks for sharing! I follow Paris on twitter, but had not seen this.
ReplyDeleteStace