Transwomen without secret identities are a rare breed. I have been involved in the femulation world for almost a half century and I know of only a handful. Artist Grayson Perry and comedian Eddie Izzard come to mind immediately, but there are others, not as famous, but just as courageous in expressing their gender out in the open.
In my travels, I have actually met one in person: Miqqi Alicia Gilbert, a philosophy professor at York University in Toronto, who goes about the university (and life) en femme and en homme.
Back in October 2008, my second full day at Fantasia Fair, I left my hotel to go to lunch at the restaurant designated by my meal ticket. As I was walking out the door, I encountered Miqqi Gilbert. She asked me if I was going to lunch and, if so, would I mind if she walked with me to the restaurant.
Would I mind? Miqqi asking me to accompany her to the restaurant was the equivalent of Ted Williams asking me to play catch with him when I was a kid.
Miqqi is one of my heroes and our walk and conversation down Provincetown's Commercial Street was one of the highlights of my week. Truth be told, I was so star struck that I don't remember what we talked about, but that does not matter. The icing on the cake was at the restaurant, when she asked me to sit at her table.
Miqqi is the Executive Director of Fantasia Fair and she also writes for Transgender Tapestry, the quarterly publication of the International Foundation for Gender Education (IFGE). You can find her writings on her Web site along with a lot of other worthwhile information
By the way, transwomen without secret identities are my heroes because I want to be just like them.
Staci - Wonderful post. I planning to do a similar one on my blog and link back to yours. Tonya
ReplyDeleteI couldn't agree more about Miqqi. I don't know her well, but have attended workshops that she gave at Fantasia Fair and First Event. I really admire the place she has reached, where she is able to be quite open about her gender identity.
ReplyDeleteI've come to identify as dual gendered (closer to transsexual than crossdresser, with a need to be female but also not give up my male side), and hope that some day I'll be able to be as open and active about my identity as women like Miqqi in an effort to help society better understand and accept all of us.
I should also say that I admire the steps you've taken recently, Staci! Coming out at work when you don't have plans to transition on the job takes extra guts. I'm glad to know that it went so well for you, because I've been contemplating a similar move at some point.
I don't think Eddie Izzard is a "transwoman" which is a term I've never heard anywhere else except your blog. I don't believe he is a transsexual or even a transvestite. He is a crossdresser, nothing more except an exceptionally funny comedian.
ReplyDeleteAnonymous --- According to Wikipedia, a transwoman "is a male-to-female (MTF) transsexual or transgender person."
ReplyDeleteAlso, according to Wikipedia, Eddie Izzard "has also described himself as 'a lesbian trapped in a man's body,' transgender, and 'a complete boy plus half a girl.'"