Hi Amaranth,
Welcome — and thank you so much for finally joining us and becoming a registered member. Your words carry the weight of experience, and they mean a great deal to me personally.
We're close in age, and I think that gives us a shared frame of reference for just how different things were back then. Like you, I grew up and came of age in a world where being trans was something you almost never saw reflected back at you in any healthy or affirming way.
You know better than most what it was like in those early days — back when good information was almost impossible to find, and so much of what existed was clouded in stigma or misinformation. In the 1980s and even into the 1990s, being transgender meant walking through life largely in isolation, trying to piece together fragments of truth from medical texts, whispered conversations, or the rare magazine article that wasn't sensationalized. When you say there was very little reliable information, that's exactly what motivated me to start Susan's Place in the first place. It was about creating the resource I wished had existed when we needed it most — a place grounded in honesty, compassion, and community.
Those of us who grew up in those years know how hard it truly was. There was no real representation — no trans people in media who weren't being mocked or portrayed as something shameful or broken. There were no online forums, no visible support networks, and very few professionals who understood what it meant to be trans. Most of us grew up thinking we were completely alone, believing that what we were feeling couldn't be spoken aloud. The few medical references that existed treated us as curiosities or pathologies, not people. It was an era of silence and survival — one where even finding the words to describe ourselves felt impossible.
That absence of understanding — that vacuum — shaped so many of our lives. And it's the reason I've fought so hard all these years to make sure no one ever has to go through that again. Every article written, every post moderated, every bit of this community's structure was built to ensure that a young person discovering who they are today will never have to feel the same loneliness or confusion that defined our early years. I promised myself that if I could prevent even one trans person from suffering the way we did — from feeling invisible or broken — then all of this would be worth it. That's why I'm fighting my damndest to keep Susan's Place alive: so that no trans person ever again has to face that kind of isolation without support, information, and community to guide them.
Today, we've made incredible strides in visibility, medicine, and understanding. At the same time, we're living through a period where transgender people are being turned into a political and cultural battleground. Well-organized groups, many of them driven by religious or ideological beliefs, and the politicians who court them, have found it useful to frame our existence as a "debate" or a "problem to solve." Regardless of anyone's personal politics, it's frightening to see our basic rights, our health care, and even our right to exist peacefully used as tools to rally support and raise money. Behind all of that rhetoric are real people — like you, me, and the folks you've sent here — just trying to live our authentic lives in our true sex without being collateral damage in someone else's campaign.
The difference now, though, is that we have each other. We have networks of trans people, allies, and professionals who know the truth, share it widely, and support one another through the storm. Communities like this one are part of that resistance to erasure — quiet, steady, and built on mutual care.
The fact that you've been referring people here all these years — trusting that they would find the help, clarity, and kind words they needed — means everything. It tells me that what we've built here continues to matter. You've helped others find this safe harbor, and that's no small thing.
Thank you for your support, for standing with us, and for being part of a generation that laid the groundwork for everything we're still fighting for today. You've helped shape the world that younger trans people are now finding their way in — and by being here at Susan's Place, you're helping ensure that no one ever has to face that journey alone again.
With deep gratitude and respect,
— Susan 💜
