A Trans Person's Photo in the Hall
Filed by: Tobi Hill-Meyer
May 22, 2009 2:00 PM
http://www.bilerico.com/2009/05/a_trans_persons_photo_in_the_hall.php#more (http://www.bilerico.com/2009/05/a_trans_persons_photo_in_the_hall.php#more)
I've heard of administrators or parents complaining when a trans speaker talks to a class, when a teacher comes out as trans, or even when a student does - but I never expected that the mere presence of a photograph would cause a similar reaction.
The photo exhibit, "Shared Community, Mixed Identities," was not even about trans people, but about representing the diversity of backgrounds that multiracial people come from. My photo was among them, along with a small bio which mentions that I am trans. It was designed as a part of a community project and made available to whatever spaces wish to display it. And when a local elementary school requested to display it, it suddenly became a significant controversy. Yesterday, multiple local news outlets decided to pick it up as a story.