I got back last night from the Philadelphia Trans Health Conference (http://trans-health.org) (June 4-6). It was quite an experience.
First of all, it was big! They said that 4500 people had pre-registered, and I'd believe that there were that many people there. There were something like 20+ sessions running from 8:45 a.m. to 7:00 p.m., for something like 240+ sessions overall. Not to mention lots of organizations and companies with tables. The hall with most of the rooms off it (I called it the "Midway") and most of the tables in the hall was always packed, but the rest of the space wasn't bad.
There was a wide variety of people. Binary (MTF, FTM) presenting people, but also a lot of non-binary and a lot of "this is who I am, deal with it" people. It was pretty much the first place I've been where I didn't have any anxiety about how I present, or feel I might have to defend who and what I am. I really noticed it because as soon as I'd go out on the street to look for a place to eat, or to go back to my hotel, I would notice myself bracing to deal with potential hassles about how I looked. Not that anyone did -- in fact, even many blocks away from the convention center, people on the street would compliment me on my dress.
I'd originally put my legal name on my tag (old habits) with "Allison" (my current trial "trans name") in parentheses, but people I met there convinced me to redo it with just "Allison" in bold marker. I'm still getting used to being called that, though.
The crowd was fairly diverse as far as race/ethnic groups -- there was a substantial contingent of people of color and latino/as and even a number of Native Americans, and there were a number of sessions devoted to the concerns of each group. It was also pretty diverse in gender: although gendering people without actually asking them is particularly risky in a place like this, it looked like it was fairly balanced between (apparently) male-presenting and female-presenting people, with a fair number of ambiguous or androgynous people, especially amoung the younger people (20's-30's) There were a lot of young adults in the crowd.
There was one session called "Queer Speed Dating/Friending" which looked like it would be fun, but it was packed and I was already stressed out by the crowds and all the unfamiliar people, so I skipped it. Maybe next year....
I mostly went to the non-binary, the medical transition, and the trans children sessions. I liked the non-binary sessions. I don't know if you could say we exactly accomplished much, but it was nice to see and hear from so many people who, in whatever way, couldn't honestly say that they were 100% male or 100% female. Maybe that's what they were intended to accomplish.
The medical sessions were IMHO mixed. One was quite informative, but a little, um, graphic at times. Others were a little stodgy and didn't keep my interest. (Disclaimer: I may feel differently when I get closer to medical transition.)
The ones about trans children were the ones that really grabbed me, though. There was a presentation by the people who wrote I am Jazz -- that is, Jazz and her mother, plus a trans boy and his mother -- and the room was packed with families, many of whom came up to tell a little of their stories at the end. I think a lot of the families come simply so their trans children can be with other trans children (yes, there were programs for children of all ages); that is, be in a place where they are normal. In another session, I saw a child who identified as non-binary, so they exist, too. I guess what really touched me was seeing all those parents who were willing to listen to their children even at age 2 or 3 and trust what their children were telling them. And then fight with the rest of the world as necessary to defend their right to be who they are, rather than what would suit other people's convenience. They're still the exception rather than the rule, but at least the trend is going in the right direction.
P.S.: Sophie LaBelle, of "Assigned Male", was there. Very charming.
Hi Allison,
I worked 3 shifts at the Youth Camp. You have to have PA child clearance. There were only 2 adult trans (me and another woman) there working and about 7 allies, some were Social workers and one had her PHD and there were 2 woman that were volunteering as part of their Lutheran church work. The other trans woman was with a particular child and they were from Montreal. I had a lot of time working with some trans kids and it was so incredibly rewarding. Their parents and all the working allies were extremely friendly and very special people. The allies each had a lot of questions about trans. One woman who was there as part of her church work talked to me for a while and we had a very frank discussion. She said when she first came she though trans was all about sex. Now she understands is about being ourselves and not about sex. She said her pastor recommended she volunteer to understand about trans because she had expressed a different view to him. She thanked me for the information and the education.
I also presented at a workshop as a Co-Presenter (4 other trans woman). It was a Diversity workshop specific to the trans community. It went extremely well. The presenters are all from the Mazzoni Evolutions group. We also had the groups facilitators assisting. They are Mazzoni social workers that do intake and therapy. Mazzoni runs the conference.
I stopped by a work table several times during the conference where there were a bunch of volunteers from work ( where I work they perform a full service Trans Children program including all surgeries) and I thanked them for volunteering.
There was a lot of training and pre-work and meetings that goes on behind scene of the conference and I was enriched participating and meeting a lot of fantastic people.
The conference was at 129 North Broad ( 14th street). The gayborhood is from 14th street to 10 street from Market to South. So we were located in a very LGBT friendly location.