Gender Stories: Recent Episodes

Alex Iantaffi

Every body has a relationship with gender... What's your story?In this podcast Alex Iantaffi, author of "How to Understand Your Gender: a practical guide for exploring who you are" will reflect on how gender impacts different areas of our lives, such as relationships, spirituality, parenting and more. They will have guests to explore these topics as well as reflect on their own experiences as a therapist, writer, educator and trans masculine, non-binary person (don't worry if you don't know what that means, there will be a podcast episode about terminology!). If you have a relevant topic you would like to talk about contact Alex at genderstoriespodcast@gmail.com They would love to chat with you and maybe invite you on the podcast!

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In this compelling interview, Dr. Alex Iantaffi interviews transgender pioneer and Minnesota State Representative Leigh Finke. They discuss cross-movement solidarity, the recent militarized occupation of Minnesota by ICE during Operation Metro Surge, the impact of the current political violence on trans communities, especially trans women, and on Leigh herself, and the importance of community organizing and political engagement in the fight for all our civil rights.

Leigh Finke is honored to serve as State Representative for District 66A. Prior to holding office she worked as a journalist, media creator, and documentary filmmaker. In 2022, she became the first out trans woman elected to the Minnesota Legislature. During her first two terms in office, Leigh has advocated for 2SLGBTQIA+ equality, abortion rights, prison justice, and environmental equity. She chairs the House Reproductive Freedom Caucus and serves as Co-Vice Chair of the Judiciary Committee. In her personal time, Leigh enjoys writing, painting, traveling, skateboarding, and organizing community events, and exploring Minnesota’s parks with her kids.

A few invitations and takeaways from the episode:

  • Cross-movement solidarity is essential because our liberation is tied to one another.
  • Trans, Two-Spirit, nonbinary, and/or gender expansive people are part of and belong in all communities.
  • Engage in local and state elections to support 2SLGBTQ+ rights.
  • Build community networks for mutual support and safety.
  • Advocate for policies that protect civil rights and gender-affirming care, especially for minors.
  • Educate yourselves and others about the systemic nature of injustice and resistance.

Find out more about Leigh Finke at the following links:

https://www.leighformn.com/about

https://linktr.ee/leighformn24

https://www.instagram.com/leighformn/

Instagram: GenderStories
Hosted by Alex Iantaffi
Music by Maxwell von Raven
Gender Stories logo by Lior Effinger-Weintraub

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Dr. Alex Iantaffi geeks out about Shakespeare, gender, and the power of theatre with Beks Roen, founder of Roguish Goblin Stories, an online queer art library where enbies and aspecs are the main characters. Alex and Beks discuss the joy of Shakespeare in the park, the power of exploring gender through acting, and the importance of queer representation.

Beks Roen (they/he) helps trans/aspec folks and allies who feel isolated and powerless to find chosen family through queer fantasy and Shakespeare. They run Roguish Goblin Stories (RGS), an independent, community-supported online queer art library. Roen’s goal for RGS is to grow it into a streaming platform that supports multiple queer artists full-time, freeing them to focus on the art they were born to share. RGS just launched their first Investor opportunity so, if you're passionate about supporting trans artists, and want a deep, personal connection to the positive impact you're making, you can join them here at this link.

RGS is about to release new episodes for their podcast "Our Lives Aren't That Interesting!" You can check it out here on YouTube. They're also looking for aspec guests for their podcast, "An Aspec Guide to Shakespeare." If you know someone who's an aspec Shakespeare artist or scholar, they’d love to interview them! Email them directly at beks [at] beksroen [dot] org

Find out more about Roguish Goblin Stories and Beks Roen at the following links:

Website: beksroen.org/rgs
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/roguishgoblinstories/
YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCFQcPRsnqPpUuo79L7tOQQA
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=61584362608360
TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@roguishgoblinstories
Bluesky: https://bsky.app/profile/roguishgoblinstory.bsky.social

Instagram: GenderStories
Hosted by Alex Iantaffi
Music by Maxwell von Raven
Gender Stories logo by Lior Effinger-Weintraub

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Dr Alex Iantaffi interviews Eun Bee Yes, the fabulous founder, show director, and producer for Transcendence Cabaret, a trans, genderqueer, two-spirit, and gender expansive drag troupe that centers BI&POC artists in the Twin Cities. They discuss the importance of representation and mentorship in the drag scene, the evolving nature of drag as a form of artistic expression, and safety concerns in the current socio-political climate. Listen for an uplifting conversation on the nourishing aspects of trans community, queer art, and the transformative power of drag in the face of oppression.

Transcendence Cabaret is an amazing troupe with some of the best well-known and up and coming artists in the Twin Cities. They are transgender, genderqueer, gender non-conforming, two spirit and truly all along the spectrum of gender and sexuality. Transcendence Cabaret’s artists are primarily BI&POC and they are one of a handful of transgender troupes who center artists of color on Turtle Island, in the so-called United States. They offer an up and close personal experience and a spotlight on often overlooked talent within the unique drag, music, and art community. Their aim is not only to entertain their audiences, but to push themselves as artists, in a rare opportunity to challenge the perceptions of our communities, and to make art from their heart and soul. You haven’t seen anything yet until you’ve spent an evening with them! Transcendence Cabaret invites you to join them each month in a constantly evolving show. Ready to go above and beyond the binary? Allow them to be your guide! All shows are hybrid and can be enjoyed from anywhere in the world, if you’re not a local.

Find out more about Transcendence Cabaret, including upcoming shows, at the following links:

www.transcendencecabaret.com

Facebook- Transcendence Cabaret

Instagram- Transcendence Cabaret

Instagram: GenderStories
Hosted by Alex Iantaffi
Music by Maxwell von Raven
Gender Stories logo by Lior Effinger-Weintraub

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Drs. Mackenzie Steiner and Alex Iantaffi discuss their collaborative program, The Collective Alchemy of Gender Liberation. This is a new, somatic-based program created by trans people for trans people in service to our collective liberation. In this episode, they talk about how the program started, the values it’s rooted in, and how gender is an embodied experience. Mackenzie and Alex also talk about how their collaborative process is heart-centered and based in relationality, rather than product-focused and treating the collaboration as a mean to an end, as is often the case in dominant culture. While the program is by and for trans people, the episode has much to offer to cis folks as well in relation to a deeper understanding of gender and to what a collaborative process centered in decoloniality might look like.

Mackenzie Steiner is a reformed clinical psychologist with over 20 years of clinical experience specializing in attachment, gender identity and socialization, as well as addictions and trauma recovery. For 20 of those years, she worked with veterans facing just about every possible type of concern related to their identities, relationships and mental health, but particularly at the interface of addictions and complex post-traumatic stress. Mackenzie transitioned into private practice at the beginning of 2023 to stretch her wings and be free to practice with communities and in ways unencumbered by organizational constraints. At the heart of her work is building an attuned, compassionate and safe relational base from which to explore the challenging aspects of one’s history and how it intersects with the present moment. Mackenzie accomplishes this through a mosaic of attachment, mindfulness, emotionally and somatically focused approaches as well as parts-work perspectives that she has found most efficiently and humanely promote long-term change and deep healing. And she has found that nature can be a profound ally for this process!

On the more personal side, she is an avid outdoors-person who is most nourished by activities ranging from landscaping to hiking, climbing and backpacking. She is also a seeker of mysteries, having an insatiable curiosity to discover the knowledge and wisdom underlying our physical, psychological, relational and spiritual realities in service of promoting our health and authentic evolution.

Find out more about the Collective Alchemy of Gender Liberation and Dr. Mackenzie Steiner at the following links:

Website: https://www.gender-alchemy.org/

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/collectivegenderalchemy/ @collectivegenderalchemy

Dr. Mackenzie Steiner’s website: https://naturesmosaictherapy.com/

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Music by Maxwell von Raven
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Drs Dulcinea Alex Pitagora and Alex Iantaffi discuss academic journeys, the complexities of aging as a queer person, and the importance of community and intergenerational connections. They discuss the challenges faced by the queer and trans communities in the current socio-political climate, the experience of being an openly queer therapist, and the impact of capitalism on mental health, while emphasizing the need for self-compassion, joy, and connection in navigating it all.

Dr. Dulcinea/Alex Pitagora is a NY-based psychotherapist and sex therapist (also licensed in NJ, PA, and CO). They have a brick-and-mortar private practice in NYC that includes individual, couples/multi-partner relationship, and poly/leather family therapy, as well as supervision and mentorship. Dr. Pitagora is an out and proud member of the queer, trans, kink, and polyamory communities, and is equally proud to be a former sex worker, as well as an anti-racist/-oppression/-exploitation activist. Dr. Pitagora holds a Master of Arts in Psychology from the New School for Social Research; a Master of Social Work from New York University; a Master of Education and a Doctorate in Clinical Sexology from Widener University; and is an AASECT Certified Sex Therapist, CST Supervisor, and CE provider along with their colleague Dr. Jillien Kahn. Dr. Pitagora teaches sexual health at New York University; has published articles and chapters in peer-reviewed journals and books; and presented at conferences on the topics of alternative sexuality and gender diversity. Dr. Pitagora is the founder of ManhattanAlternative.com, a nationwide alternative lifestyle affirmative provider listing; and was a co-founder and -organizer of the AltSex NYC Conference.

Find out more about Dr Dulcinea’s work at the following links:

https://www.dulcineapitagora.com/
https://kinkdoctor.com/
@kinkdoctor

Instagram: GenderStories
Hosted by Alex Iantaffi
Music by Maxwell von Raven
Gender Stories logo by Lior Effinger-Weintraub

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Drs Roger Kuhn and Alex Iantaffi discuss the intersection of creativity, gender identity, and spirituality. Dr Kuhn shares parts of his own journey of self-discovery through music and writing, as well as delving into the impact of colonization on gender. They also explore the intersection of somatic work and cultural context, emphasizing the essential need for indigenous perspectives in therapeutic practices.

Dr. Roger Kuhn is a Poarch Creek Two-Spirit Indigiqueer soma-cultural sex therapist, sexuality educator, writer, activist, and musician. Roger’s work explores the concepts of decolonizing and unsettling sexuality and focuses on the way culture impacts and informs our bodily experiences. He is a community organizer of the Bay Area American Indian Two-Spirit powwow, and a board member of the Two-Spirit & Native LGBTQ+ Center for Equity. His first book, Somacultural Liberation, is available in both paperback and audio. His music can be streamed on all digital platforms.

Find out more about Dr Roger Kuhn and follow his work at the following links:

www.rogerkuhn.com
Instagram: @rkoughenr

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Music by Maxwell von Raven
Gender Stories logo by Lior Effinger-Weintraub

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Dr Alex Iantaffi talks with Tristan Katz about conscious marketing, social justice, and how to navigate the intersection of personal integrity and professional practices. They explore the complexities of marketing in the so-called “wellness space”, the importance of engaging in critical thinking, the responsibilities that come with online visibility, and the role of social media in shaping cultural narratives.

Tristan Katz (they/he) is a business consultant, conscious marketing strategist, and equity-inclusion facilitator with a lifelong commitment to human rights and justice. Tristan supports individuals and organizations in aligning their values with their messaging through an intersectional, anti-oppression lens. Tristan’s work centers authenticity, relationship, and accessibility, and they’ve collaborated with authors, educators, and cultural leaders as well as organizations like Stanford University, HubSpot, Portland Public Schools, and Port of Portland. Currently, Tristan serves as COO and Director of Programming at Fruition Growth Network. He is also a longtime yoga student, Yoga Journal game-changer (2021), and former board member of Accessible Yoga. At the core of everything Tristan offers is the belief that marketing can be a tool for connection, truth-telling, and cultural change—not just sales.

Find out more about Tristan and follow their work at the following links:

https://www.katz-creative.com/
https://instagram.com/tristankatzcreative

Instagram: GenderStories
Hosted by Alex Iantaffi
Music by Maxwell von Raven
Gender Stories logo by Lior Effinger-Weintraub

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Dr. Alex Iantaffi speaks with Dean Spade about his life-long work in queer and trans liberation, the challenges of writing about relationships, and the importance of emotional awareness and conflict resolution in relationships and movement building.

Dean Spade has been working in movements for queer and trans liberation, anti-militarism, and police and prison abolition for the past 25 years. He’s the author of Normal Life: Administrative Violence, Critical Trans Politics, and the Limits of Law, and Mutual Aid: Building Solidarity During This Crisis (and the Next) the director of the documentary “Pinkwashing Exposed: Seattle Fights Back!.” His new book is Love in a Fucked Up World: How to Build Relationships, Hook Up and Raise Hell Together, and he is the host of a new podcast with the same name.

Listen to Dean’s new podcast: https://www.deanspade.net/podcast/

Find out more about Dean and his work at the following links:

deanspade.net
IG: @spade.dean
X: @deanspade
Facebook: Dean Spade
Bluesky: deanspade.bsky.social
Tiktok: @deanspade

Instagram: GenderStories
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Music by Maxwell von Raven
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Dr. Alex Iantaffi talks with Mel Cassidy about relationships, non-monogamy, queerness, the power of somatic practices, and love on the path towards collective liberation.

Mel Cassidy is a somatic relationship coach committed to the path of liberatory love and rewilding intimacy. They specialize in working with queer and questioning humans (and those who love them) exploring post-monogamous relationships—with a focus on polyamory, solo polyamory, and relationship anarchy. They are of Irish, Greek, and Khorakhane Romani descent and have lived in 3 countries, across 3 continents. They currently live in British Columbia, Canada, and work with clients and students around the world. Their first book, Radical Relating, A Queer and Polyamory-Informed Guide to Love Beyond the Myth of Monogamy, is published by North Atlantic Books.

Find out more about Mel and their work at the following links:

Website: radicalrelating.ca

Social Media: @radicalrelating on IG/FB/Substack/Insight Timer

More on the Radical Relating Book:
www.radicalrelating.ca/book

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Music by Maxwell von Raven
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'Profound and vulnerable. An essential gift for all of us that relate' - Anne Mauro

What do we mean when we say 'relationship'?
How do we separate our needs and desires from norms and expectations?
How can we approach our relationships with mutuality, care and compassion?

This down-to-earth guide is the ultimate companion for anybody who wants to examine their place in the world -- how we relate to ourselves, and others.

With considerations of historical, cultural, and developmental contexts; explorations of relationship diversity as it manifests in queerness, the ace and aro spectrum, non-monogamy and neurodivergence ; and a look towards deeper, compassionate, interdependent ways to relate - this book will help people of all ages, backgrounds and identities explore their relational world.

Order a copy of the Book: How to Understand Your Relationships: A Practical Guide

Instagram: GenderStories
Hosted by Alex Iantaffi
Music by Maxwell von Raven
Gender Stories logo by Lior Effinger-Weintraub

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Anne Mauro (she/her) is a Licensed Couples and Family therapist, American Association of Sexuality Educators, Counselors, and Therapist (AASECT) certified sex therapist, sexuality educator, sex therapy supervisor, and American Association of Marriage and Family Therapy (AAMFT) clinical supervisor. Her private practice is nestled in the interwebs on the unceded territory of the Coast Salish peoples in Washington State. She has two publications: More Than Ebony and Ivory: Complexities of sex therapy with interracial couples, can be found in An Intersectional Approach to Sex Therapy: Centering the lives of indigenous, racialized, and people of color and The Colonization of Black Sexualities: A clinical guide to relearning and healing.Anne is in continued service to the sexuality community by serving as the AASECT Western Representative to the nominating committee.

Links:

www.annemauro.com

https://www.routledge.com/The-Colonization-of-Black-Sexualities-A-Clinical-Guide-to-Relearning-and/Mauro/p/book/9781032233680

https://www.instagram.com/iamannemauro/

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MAEVE CHEVONNE DUVALLY

Maeve is a transgender multi-cultural communications specialist, storyteller and LGBTQ+ advocate. She spent the bulk of her career as a journalist and corporate spokesperson, most recently at Goldman Sachs.

After a lifetime of working for large companies, she now consults for corporations and other organizations on communications strategy and diversity, equity, and inclusion. Maeve also mentors transgender people, is a public speaker and a frequent subject of press interviews on LGBTQ+ workplace issues.

She was a managing director in corporate communications at Goldman Sachs over an 18-year career. Prior to joining Goldman, Maeve worked in media relations at Merrill Lynch.

Before that, she was a financial journalist and editor at Bridge News for nearly 15 years with stints in Tokyo, Washington D.C. and New York. She spent ten formative years in Japan in the 1980s and is fluent in the language.

Maeve serves on the boards of GLAAD; the Knight-Bagehot Fellowship, a journalism non-profit; and Connecticut-based LGBTQ+ health provider Anchor Health Initiative.

She earned a B.A. in English from Providence College in 1983 and was a Knight-Bagehot Fellow at Columbia University Graduate School of Journalism School in 1994.

A published author, her memoir, “Maeve Rising,” debuted through Sibylline Press in August 2023.

https://www.instagram.com/becomingmaeve/
https://www.maeveduvally.com/

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Renée Yoxon is a queer, nonbinary, and disabled gender-affirming voice teacher with a passion for voice education, creativity, and vocal curiosity. Since 2010, they have taught thousands of students how to love their voice. Their strength as a teacher is explaining complicated concepts in plain language that anyone can understand, as well as anticipating student problems before they occur. They are the creator of a suite of online courses that provide concise and easy-to-follow trans voice education to trans and nonbinary people all over the world. Renée is a creative thinker, and a deep listener, and their favourite thing in the world is helping people just like you to reach their voice goals. Find them at reneeyoxon.com

Links:

http://reneeyoxon.com

http://tiktok.com/@reneeyoxon

http://instagram.com/reneeyoxon

http://youtube.com/reneeyoxon

http://facebook.com/reneeyoxon

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Oliver Radclyffe is part of the new wave of transgender writers unafraid to address the complex nuances of transition, examining the places where gender identity, sexual orientation, feminist allegiance, social class and family history overlap. His work has appeared in The New York Times and Electric Literature. He currently lives on the Connecticut coast where he is raising his four children. He has two books: ADULT HUMAN MALE, a monograph, released by Unbound Edition Press in 2023, and FRIGHTEN THE HORSES, a memoir, forthcoming from Roxane Gay Books in 2024.

Preorder Frighten the Horses: https://bookshop.org/p/books/frighten-the-horses/20490972?ean=9780802163158

https://oliverradclyffe.substack.com/

https://www.oliverradclyffe.com/

https://www.instagram.com/oliverradclyffe/

https://linktr.ee/OliverRadclyffe

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Eli Lawliet, Ph.D., (he/him) is the dreamer and weaver of The Gender Doula. In addition to a decade of experience researching trans healthcare, law, policy, and history, he has formal training as a full spectrum doula, breathwork facilitator, and tarot reader, as well as many years of surviving the world of poverty wages and retail work. The broad scope of his experience directly informs the equally broad spectrum of his work as The Gender Doula. Eli has been seeing clients since January of 2020 and has worked with hundreds of trans folks nationally and internationally in sessions, classes, and workshops. Though he was born in Oklahoma and raised in Missouri, Eli currently lives in Los Angeles (Gabrieliño-Tongva, Chumash, & Kizh land) with his partner, three cats, a dog, and four snakes.

Website: https://www.thegenderdoula.com/

TikTok, IG, FB: @TheGenderDoula

All links: https://linktr.ee/TheGenderDoula

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Justine Mastin, LMFT (she/her) is a pop culture psychology expert and so much more. She literally wrote the book on Therapeutic Fanfiction—Starship Therapise: Using Therapeutic Fanfiction to Rewrite Your Lifeand she offered support to healers in The Grieving Therapist: Caring for Yourself and Your Clients When it Feels Like the End of the World. Justine is proud to nurture future therapists as an AAMFT-Approved Supervisor and educator. You can find out more about Justine at http://justinemastin.com/ & follow her on Instagram & TikTok: @mindbodyfandom

You can also follow the links below to find out more about parts of Justine’s work mentioned in this episode!

Fearless Leader: YogaQuest

Podcast co-host: Starship Therapise

Podcast co-host: Dark Side of the Mat

TEDx Speaker: Harnessing the Healing Power of Therapeutic Fanfiction

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Dean FM (Dean-Fraser Milford) is a Boston Massachusetts based non-binary rapper, activist and influencer.

His music encapsulates eclectic thoughts that scat over percussive rhythms and exotic sounds. His performances exude drag culture and satiric expression. In 2016, Dean released his debut EP “Watch It”, which received local and national coverage. In 2020, Dean FM released his EP entitled “SISSY.” The music video for his lead single “Bottom Bit” shines a light on the exploitation of prostitution.

Dean FM stands for compassion, courage, and equality. In his activism, he supports the awareness and acceptance of gender neutrality. He refuses to deny his true identity — identifying himself with both he and her pronouns. Dean also advocates for the awareness of minority mental health and the prevention of animal abuse.

As an influencer, Dean utilizes his platforms to further promote his art and advocacy work.

https://deanfmofficial.com/

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Damon Constantinides, PhD, LCSW, CST

Damon is a queer trans man and sex nerd who loves being a dad, teaching and talking about queer and trans pleasure, and growing plants as a way to connect with magic and the sacredness of the earth. He is trained as both a clinical social worker and a sex therapist and has worked for more than 20 years in the fields of trans and queer health. He owns a private therapy and coaching practice where he offers virtual groups and services to trans and queer folks all over the world.

Damon is a trainer for the sex therapy certificate program at the California Institute of Integral Studies and an adjunct progressor at Widener University. He is also the co-author of the book Sex Therapy for Erotically Marginalized Clients: Nine Principles of Clinical Support and his writing can also be found in the newest edition of Trans Bodies, Trans Selves. You can learn more about his work at www.drdamonc.com or on his IG @dr.damonc.

Links:

Individual and Relationship Therapy and Coaching - www.drdamonc.com

Writing - www.drdamonc.com/writing

Trans Masc Sexual Pleasure Program - www.drdamonc.com/coaching

Trans Masc 30+ Connections Group - www.drdamonc.com/coachingsupportgroup

Queer Sexual Pleasure Program - www.drdamonc.com/qsp

IG @Damon Constantinides

IG @wildpansycoaching

FB www.facebook.com/drdamonc

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Laura Scarrone Bonhomme (she/her), is a Consultant Clinical Psychologist who specialises in Gender, Sexual, and Relationship Diversity. She provides assessment, psychotherapy, and training to other professionals through www.affirm.lgbt.
https://www.linkedin.com/in/laura-scarrone-bonhomme-3749087a

Skye Davies (she/they) is a Peer Support Worker at TransPlus, a gender dysphoria service. They also work as a Volunteer Counsellor at Metro, helping LGBTQ+ people.

Dr Michael Beattie (he/him)is a Counselling Psychologist in private practice with research interests in the psychology of men and masculinities. In addition to psychotherapy, Michael provides training in Gender, Sexual, and Relationship Diversity through www.affirm.lgbt.

Purchase the book at bookshop.org.
Social: https://www.linkedin.com/company/affirm-lgbt/

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Alex Papale PT, DPT (they/them) is a pelvic health physical therapist, consultant, sex educator and international speaker based in Boston MA. They specialize in queer and trans health, and treating patients of all genders at Flourish Physical Therapy.

Alex especially loves to help patients with pelvic pain, difficulties around sex, peripartum care, pelvic floor support with HRT, orthopedic support for pain related to chest binding or genital tucking, and healing from gender affirming surgeries.

When they’re not in the treatment room, you can find them writing and teaching gender affirming, sex positive, kink-informed courses for current/future healthcare providers, or for anyone who wants to learn more about sexuality, their bodies, and pelvic health.

Alex has also created the course “Physical Therapy Care of Trans/Gender Diverse Patients: Multi-Day Con-Ed for Pelvic Health Providers”.

PT Website: https://flourishphysicaltherapy.com/

Website: https://alexpapale.com (Under Construction)

Substack: https://alexpapale.substack.com/

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/alexpapalept/

Courses: https://www.academy.pelvicglobal.com/alex-papale-courses

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Enfys J. Book (they/them) is an author, priestx, blogger, teacher, performer, singer, songwriter, and comedian. They wrote the Gold COVR award-winning Queer Qabala: Nonbinary, Genderfluid, Omnisexual Mysticism & Magick (Llewellyn, June 2022); co-authored (with Ivo Dominguez, Jr.) Sagittarius Witch (Llewellyn, 2024); and wrote the forthcoming Queer Rites: A Magickal Grimoire to Honor Your Milestones with Pride (Llewellyn, 2025).

They are also a founding member of the "funny, filthy, feminist, fandom folk" band The Misbehavin' Maidens, the creator of a website on queer magick called majorarqueerna.com, and the host of a podcast called "4 Quick Q's: Book Talk with Enfys," where they interview pagan authors using questions determined by a roll of the dice. They have taught many classes on tarot, Hermetic Qabala, magickal rites of passage, and queering one’s magical practice at conferences and events around the world.

By day, Enfys is a technical account manager at a tech company, specializing in content migration and onboarding new customers.

As a nonbinary, bisexual pagan and performer, Enfys employs a queer lens to break down limiting binaries in magickal practice, and advocates for bi, trans, non-binary/genderqueer, queer-, and asexual visibility and inclusion through their writing and music.

Websites

https://majorarqueerna.com (blog)

https://misbehavinmaidens.com (band)

Links to buy Enfys’ books

https://majorarqueerna.com/buy

Social Media

https://facebook.com/majorarqueerna

https://instagram.com/majorarqueerna

https://instagram.com/enfysbook

https://youtube.com/@majorarqueerna

https://soundcloud.com/majorarqueerna

https://kind.social/@enfysbook

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Miah Jeffra is author of The Fabulous Ekphrastic Fantastic! (Sibling Rivalry 2020), The Violence Almanac (Black Lawrence 2021), the chapbook The First Church of What’s Happening (Nomadic 2017), and co-editor, with Arisa White and Monique Mero, of the anthology Home is Where You Queer Your Heart (Foglifter 2021). Awards include the New Millennium Prize, the Sidney Lanier Fiction Prize, The Atticus Review Creative Nonfiction Prize, the Alice Judson Hayes Fellowship, Lambda Literary Fellowship, and 2019 finalist for the Lambda Literary Award for Outstanding Anthology. Most recent work can be seen in StoryQuarterly, Prairie Schooner, The North American Review, The Pinch, The Greensboro Review, DIAGRAM, jubilat and Barrelhouse. Miah is a founding editor of Whiting Award-winning queer literary collaborative, Foglifter Press, and teaches writing and antiracist studies at Santa Clara University.

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Nicoz Balboa is an Italian visual artist, using his life events as inspiration for works ranging from painting, drawing, tattoo, to pyrography, graphic journal and sketchbook. He reveals his hopes, failures and successes in candid and, at times, excoriating work that is frequently both tragic and humorous. The themes of provocation and sexuality repeatedly surface in Nicoz’s work, as his oeuvre is firmly rooted in the tradition of transfeminist discourse.

website https://www.nicozbalboastudio.com/

substack: https://nicozbalboa.substack.com/

patreon: https://www.patreon.com/graphicjournalclub

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Marissa Stein is a Licensed Mental Health Counselor in the state of Washington (LMHC), an AASECT Certified Sex Therapist (CST), and a Nationally Certified Counselor (NCC). They are a non-binary, neuroqueer, kinky, and queer, Pagan, practitioner of magic, who lives with chronic pain and disability. Given these lived experiences, they have felt the impact of intersectional marginalization. As a white person, they do their best to be aware of their privilege and biases as part of dominant euro-centric descendant culture. Marissa endeavors to do their best to do anti-oppression work that is trauma aware as they believe every person deserves to enjoy their life free from shame and oppression. They strive for cultural humility, and to be an accomplice in the continued fight against white supremacy wherever they can.

https://www.taravenerysextherapy.com/

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Alice O'Callaghan is a transgender community activist and CEO for the queer production company Zenith City Horror. She is a "20 under 40" award winner for her queer community and artistic leadership which spans over a decade in the Twin Ports. She is a modern day House Mother, providing advocacy and safe spaces for vulnerable queer youth and artists in the Twin Ports area. She prioritizes her fight against discrimination and exploitation of trans artists in the entertainment industry.

Zenith City Horror: https://www.zch.gay/
Miss Cupcake: https://www.instagram.com/ms.cupcake.drag/

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Aydian Dowling is the co-founder and CEO at TRACE. With the support of just 1 person, a trans or nonbinary youth’s risk of suicide goes down by 40%. This is why Aydian co-founded TRACE, the app created to foster a brighter and more gender-affirming future for transgender and non-binary individuals. He has been a transgender activist and influencer for more than 12 years and has been featured on the Ellen Degeneres Show as well as on the cover of Men’s Health. As the founder of Point of Pride, a global nonprofit that has generated over $2.5M in aid for the trans community, he is committed to equity and access to medical and wellness care for the most vulnerable members of the transgender and nonbinary community.

Point of Pride: https://www.pointofpride.org/

TRACE: https://www.thetrace.app/

Follow Aydian on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/alionsfear

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Born in a small pentecostal coal-mining town in the Appalachian Mountains, October Ryan struggled to express her true self from a very early age. When her femininity was met with hate, anger, & abuse, she retreated into a series of approval-seeking fake personas. The pentecostal pastor-in-training, the meek academic bookworm, the rebellious grad school party boy, the small town psychology professor... none of her false identities gave October any sense of peace. When she moved to the diverse haven of LA, she finally came out as a proud transgender woman. While healing her traumas & beginning her transition, she wrote & published her first novel, The Beginning Of October, heavily inspired by the pain in her post & her hopes for the future, and has recently released a new murder mystery novel, The Book of Monahan. October has also co-written and released her debut album, Homecoming, co-written and produced by American Idol runner-up and chart-topping artist Blake Lewis. For more on October, check out octoberryan.com.

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PJ Desrochers is a visual artist who explores their nonbinary humanness through art. PJ creates images, builds sculptural installations and immersive experiences of their
gender and a life well-lived. Their media originates with photographic self portraits printed on transparency film. PJ then builds creations by layering the transparent images and connecting them quite often using fingerprinted scotch tape and fishing line to found objects. These Photographic Assemblages can often be found installed within the natural beauty of central Vermont where they photograph and film these beloved creations to become gallery accessible and presented for your viewing pleasure.

Project website: https://www.11toseeandbeseen11.com/

Kickstarter: https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/toseeandbeseen/to-see-and-be-seen-nonbinary-tarot

PJ Derochers website: http://www.pjdesrochersart.com/

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K. Allison Hammer is assistant professor and coordinator of women, gender, and sexuality studies at Southern Illinois University.

Masculinity in Transition traces the roots of “toxic masculinity,” showing that while toxic strains of masculinity are mainly associated with straight, white men, trans and queer masculinities often reiterate similar patterns of behavior. Arguing that these malignant forms of masculinity can be displaced, K. Allison Hammer’s bold rethinking lays bare the underlying fragility of normative masculinity.

Link to more information about the book or to order:

https://www.upress.umn.edu/book-division/books/masculinity-in-transition

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S. H. COTUGNO (Sage)is a queer and mixed-race Victorian horror nerd born and raised in Los Angeles, California. They are a director, writer and storyboard artist in the animation industry and have previously worked on projects such as Gravity Falls, The Owl House and Star vs. the Forces of Evil. The Glass Scientists will be their first published graphic novel. You can see more of their work at SeeGoatRun.com or check out their linktree at: https://linktr.ee/arythusa

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D’Lo is a queer/transgender Tamil-Sri Lankan-American actor/writer/comic. He has toured his solo shows internationally, his last show “To T, or not To T?” running last year at the Kirk Douglas Theater in LA. Acting credits include: LOOKING, TRANSPARENT, SENSE 8, and MR.ROBOT, CONNECTING, Quantum Leap and Billy Eichner movie BROS. He is a Senior Civic Media Fellow through USC's Annenberg Innovation Lab funded via the MacArthur Foundation. His work has been published and/or written about in academic journals, literary anthologies, and print/online journalism sources, such as LA Times, The Guardian, NBC, CNN and The Advocate. D'Lo (he/they) dlocokid.com
imdb.me/dlocokid
instagram.com/dlocokid 

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Pidgeon Pagonis is an activist on behalf of intersex and marginalized people. They have advanced youth advocacy with interACT, launched an intersex YouTube channel, written for Everyday Feminism, cofounded the Intersex Justice Project (IJP) and the #EndIntersexSurgery campaign, and introduced the intersex and nonbinary clothing line Too Cute to Be Binary. They’ve created two short documentaries, The Son I Never Had, which premiered at Outfest, and A Normal Girl, which screened at the American Pavilion at the Cannes Film Festival; appeared on the cover of National Geographic’s “Gender Revolution” special issue; and been honored as an LGBT Champion of Change by the Obama White House. They are currently documenting intersex people of color for Physical Record, a new photo series subsidized by Astraea’s Intersex Human Rights Fund. NOBODY NEEDS TO KNOW  is their first book. For more information visit www.pid.ge.

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GenderMeowster (they/them) is a white, trans masc, nonbinary, AuDHD, mobility aid using, disabled content creator on Twitch, YouTube, and social media platforms. They, along with their friends, curate and maintain the Meowster’s Clowder discord server, Trans101 content on social media, and host and produce the Genderful Talk Show! Their online community is an intersectional 2SLGBTQIA+, neurodivergent, disabled, BIPOC-forward, plural, and alterhuman friendly space and we welcome people with these identities and our allies.

Gender Federation is a stream team and mutual aid fundraising entity created by GenderMeowster that hosts events to raise direct mutual aid for trans people seeking gender affirming surgeries. Please follow us on socials for both @GenderMeowster and @GenderFederation to learn more and keep up with our events and activities.

Recurring events:
Nov 20 every year - Trans Day of Remembrance (stream)
March 31 every year - Trans Day of Visibility (stream)
Mon-Thursday weekly - streams on https://twitch.tv/GenderMeowster
Daily - discord community: https://discord.gg/meowster

Links:
GenderMeowster links: https://linktr.ee/GenderMeowster
Gender Federation links: https://linktr.ee/genderfederation
Become a Patron: https://www.patreon.com/GenderMeowster?fan_landing=true

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Eli Conley is an indie folk singer-songwriter, teaching artist, and activist based on Miwok and Nisenan land (Sacramento, California). He makes music for queer and trans folks, justice seekers, and anyone who doesn’t fit easily in a box. Eli's voice is tender and heartfelt, with melodies and that can leave you teary-eyed yet hopeful. As a queer transgender man from the South, his songs tell stories that aren’t always reflected in roots music.

Eli founded Queer Country West Coast, a regular series featuring LGBTQ+ blues, folk, and country artists in California. He has opened for Carsie Blanton, Heather Mae, and Grammy-winner Kimya Dawson, and been featured in the Huffington Post and the Advocate.

Eli's third album Searching for What's True is coming in July 2023. Themes of uncertainty, ache, and loss come up again and again on this record. The songs are drawn from the concrete and immediate details of daily life: a stuffed animal clutched in a child's arms, a colorful sunset after a forest fire, a confederate statue toppling to the ground.

Searching for What's True is Eli's first release since being diagnosed with a serious repetitive stress injury that forced him to stop playing music for many months. After wrist surgery and careful rehab, he came back to songwriting with a renewed sense of purpose. On the album's first single "Making Something New" he describes the work of an artist as "finding beauty in the wreckage / making meaning of the grief / when we tell our stories true we find release." His deep belief in the transformative power of creativity stems not only from his own experiences, but his many years leading singing and songwriting classes for queer and transgender people and allies.

https://www.eliconley.com/

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Tilly Bridges is one part of the trans woman / cis woman writing team (with her wife Susan) and creators of comics, screenplays, teleplays and audio dramas. On June 27th, Bridges releases BEGIN TRANSMISSION – The Trans Allegories of the Matrix, tracking one person’s transition journey — from Thomas Anderson, to Neo, to Trinity.

As a transgender woman, Bridges said she had always connected with the Matrix movies on a level so strongly that she didn’t understand. The first time she watched the movies after coming out publicly was revelatory. “I was motivated to rewatch and take notes,” says Bridges. “My entire world turned upside down as I discovered almost frame by frame how deep and layered the allegories were within the films.” Since sharing her essays, she’s been overwhelmed with messages from people her essays have helped. One person said it saved their life.

Making award-winning audio drama via their production company Pendant Productions since 2004, Tilly and her wife have had six shows crack Apple Podcasts’ top 60 scripted sci-fi shows of all time.” Tilly and Susan are also head writers of the 2023 Nebula Awards and are presently writing for the new Monster High animated series and the Star Trek Adventures an Fallout role-playing games. She lives in Los Angeles.

CONNECT WITH TILLY ONLINE
Official Website: birdguest.com
Twitter: @TillyBridges
Instagram: @heckyeahtillybridges

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Redfern Jon Barrett (they/them) is author to novels including Proud Pink Sky, a speculative story set in the world’s first LGBTQ+ state – which will be released by Bywater Books in March 2023. Redfern’s essays, reviews, and short stories have appeared in publications including The Sun Magazine, Guernica, Strange Horizons, Passages North, PinkNews, Booth, FFO, ParSec, Orca, and Nature Futures. They are nonbinary, have a Ph.D. in Literature, and currently live in Berlin. Read more at redjon.com.

Proud Pink Sky is a novel set in the world's first gay state – described as “gripping” and a “remarkable alternate history” by Publisher’s Weekly.

VIEW THE VIDEO TRAILER

VIEW PUBLISHER'S PAGE

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In this episode of Gender Stories, Alex talks to Coltan Schoenike, (they/them) a queer, nonbinary,  trans and femme marriage and family therapist mentee, sex therapist, sex educator, doctoral student, researcher, and author.  Together they discuss gender affirming care: what it is, what it isn't, and why it is vital.

Find out more about Coltan at:
https://www.coltanschoenike.com/

You can also follow them on Twitter and Instagram @ColtanSchoenike

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Dee Fish is a Pennsylvania-based cartoonist, illustrator, and graphic designer. As a cartoonist, she is the creator of the online comic strip, “Dandy & Company“. An all-ages humor comic strip in the vein of “Looney Tunes” and “Peanuts” surrounding the misadventures of a dog and his boy that ran from 2001 to 2018. She is also the writer and artist of the creator-owned comic book, “The Wellkeeper", A young adult fantasy/adventure in the vein of mystical adventures that appeal to children of all ages as “Harry Potter” and “The Hobbit”.

As an artist, she has worked on stories for “Tellos”, “The Perhapanauts” and “The Mice Templar” for Image comics, “Star Mage” and “White Chapel” for IDW Publishing, “Atomic Robo” for Red 5 Comics, and the co-creator, co-writer and illustrator for the series “Carpe Noctem” for Hashtag Comics.

Recently, Dee became the artist of Sabrina Pandora’s long-running webcomic, “Giant Girl Adventures”, and in 2017, began her current webcomic, "Finding Dee. "Finding Dee" is the hilarious and heartwarming webcomic about the trials and tribulations of trying to make it as a cartoonist while coming out as transgender in your 40s.

Dee Fish
Cartoonist, Designer & Illustrator
http://www.findingdeecomic.com
http://www.artofdeefish.com

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LILY ZHENG (they/them) is a no-nonsense Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion speaker, strategist, and consultant who specializes in creating diverse, equitable, and inclusive workplaces through hands-on systemic change. A dedicated change-maker and advocate named a Forbes D&I Trailblazer, 2021 DEI Influencer, and LinkedIn Top Voice on Racial Equity, Lily's work has been featured in the Harvard Business Review, New York Times, and NPR. Their most recent book, DEI Deconstructed, centers on accountable and effective practices to achieve DEI outcomes in organizations.

https://lilyzheng.co/home/books

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Jen Winston (she/they) is a writer, creative director, and bisexual based in Brooklyn. Their work bridges the intersection of sex, politics, and technology, and has been featured in The Wall Street Journal, The Washington Post, CNN, and more. Jen is passionate about unlearning and creating work that helps others do the same. Her newsletter, The Bi Monthly, is dedicated to exploring bi issues and experiences--it comes out every month, much like Jen herself. Follow Jen on Twitter, Instagram, and TikTok (please, she's begging you): @Jenerous.

https://bookshop.org/p/books/greedy-notes-from-a-bisexual-who-wants-too-much-jen-winston/16221521?ean=9781982179175

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Born in Bangor, Maine, Kate Costigan spent the first six years of her life creating memories with her family in the New England states. When her mother passed away, she moved to Florida, where the makeup of her “grown-ups” changed dramatically. Kate’s teachers became her heroes and inspired her to become an educator. The stories she shares are reflections of her personal experiences as well as those she has witnessed in her nineteen years as a teacher. Kate hopes to help children around the world see that differences can and should be celebrated and that kindness is a universal language. 

https://bookshop.org/p/books/my-grown-ups-kate-costigan/17304204?ean=9781612449920

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Nick Walker is a queer, transgender, flamingly autistic writer and educator, best known for her foundational work on the neurodiversity paradigm and Neuroqueer Theory. She is a professor of psychology at the California Institute of Integral Studies, senior aikido instructor at the Aiki Arts Center in Berkeley, author of the book Neuroqueer Heresies, and co-creator of the urban fantasy webcomic Weird Luck.

The Neuroqueer website: https://neuroqueer.com

The Weird Luck webcomic: https://weirdluck.net

My Twitter: https://twitter.com/WalkerSensei

My Facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/nickwalkersensei

https://neuroqueer.com/neuroqueer-heresies/

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Chrissie Chevasutt facilitates the online community Transgender Church and is well-known as an advocate for transgender awareness in the Church. She and her wife Pam have lived, worked and witnessed in Oxford for more than thirty years.

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/Chrissie-Chevasutt-107698101263187 

Heaven Come Down: The Story of a Transgender Disciple by Chrissie Chevasutt (Darton, Longman and Todd, £12.99) is available from all good retailers

https://dartonlongmantodd.co.uk/titles/2324-9781913657208-heaven-come-down

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Chrissie Chevasutt facilitates the online community Transgender Church and is well-known as an advocate for transgender awareness in the Church. She and her wife Pam have lived, worked and witnessed in Oxford for more than thirty years.

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/Chrissie-Chevasutt-107698101263187 

Heaven Come Down: The Story of a Transgender Disciple by Chrissie Chevasutt (Darton, Longman and Todd, £12.99) is available from all good retailers

https://dartonlongmantodd.co.uk/titles/2324-9781913657208-heaven-come-down

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Trans/Non-Binary artist Rascal Miles is part of a new wave and generation of artists emerging into the music scene who are well familiar with challenge and adversity but who are excelling because of it and not being defined by it. Rascal has been working towards the release of music that is personal and elevated and sets them on the path of the next stage in their music journey. That day is almost here as Rascal prepares to release new song 'Tailor Made', which deals with the experience of top surgery.

Rascal Miles | Instagram, YouTube, Spotify, Facebook | Linktree
Rascal Miles

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Trans/Non-Binary artist Rascal Miles is part of a new wave and generation of artists emerging into the music scene who are well familiar with challenge and adversity but who are excelling because of it and not being defined by it. Rascal has been working towards the release of music that is personal and elevated and sets them on the path of the next stage in their music journey. That day is almost here as Rascal prepares to release new song 'Tailor Made', which deals with the experience of top surgery.

Rascal Miles | Instagram, YouTube, Spotify, Facebook | Linktree
Rascal Miles

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Trystan is the solo author of How We Do Family, a book described as “a refreshing new take on family life for the LGBTQ community and beyond.” He is also a 2021 Lambda Literary Emerging LGBTQ Voices Fellow. Trystan co-wrote a children’s book with his partner, Biff. It’s called The Light Of You and was published by Flamingo Rampant Press. Trystan is also an essayist; his blog can be found here.

How We Do Family: From Adoption to Trans Pregnancy, What We Learned about Love and LGBTQ Parenthood a book by Trystan Reese (bookshop.org)

Trystan Reese

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Alex Iantaffi interviews Precious Brady-Davis to discuss her book "I have always been me: a memoir" and the themes of family, life transitions, healing, faith, and belonging . Precious Brady-Davis is an award-winning diversity advocate, communications professional, and public speaker. She currently serves as the associate regional communications director at the Sierra Club. She served for three years as the assistant director of diversity recruitment initiatives at Columbia College Chicago, her alma mater, implementing the campus-wide diversity initiative and providing leadership and oversight of national diversity recruitment and inclusion policy initiatives. She also served as the youth outreach coordinator at Center on Halsted, the largest LGBTQ community center in the Midwest. During Precious’s tenure, she launched a $1.6 million CDC HIV prevention grant, which provided outreach, education, youth programming, and testing services to over three thousand young African American and Latinx gay, bi, and trans youth. Precious is married to Myles Brady and lives in Hyde Park on the South Side of Chicago, where they are raising their daughter, Zayn. In her free time, she enjoys online shoe shopping, travel, and fine dining with friends. For more information visit www.preciousbradydavis.com.

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This episode was recorded live on April 21st, 2021 for London's fabulous, independent bookstore Pages of Hackney. Jamie Windust, model, presenter, contributing editor at Gay Times, TedxLondon speaker, and author of In Their Shoes discusses their book and writing process with Alex Iantaffi, author of Gender Trauma. You can follow Jamie on Instagram and Twitter. You can order In Their Shoes and Gender Trauma from Pages of Hackney, your nearest independent bookstore, or wherever you get your books.

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Alex Iantaffi interviews author, artist, screenwriter and speaker Hari Ziyad about their new book Black Boy Out of Time.  They talk about family, mental health, gender, growing up Black and queer,  abolition, ancestral grief and wisdom,  and healing.

Hari Ziyad is a cultural critic, a screenwriter, and the editor-in-chief of RaceBaitr. They are a 2021 Lambda Literary Fellow, and their writing has been featured in BuzzFeed, Out, the Guardian, Paste magazine, and the academic journal Critical Ethnic Studies, among other publications. Previously they were the managing editor of the Black Youth Project and a script consultant on the television series David Makes Man. Hari spends their all-too-rare free time trying to get their friends to give the latest generation of R & B starlets a chance and attempting to entertain their always very unbothered pit bull mix, Khione. You can find out more about Hari at https://www.hariziyad.com/ and follow them on Twitter.

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Alex Iantaffi interviews Lucie Fielding, author of the forthcoming book Trans Sex: Clinical Approaches to Trans Sexualities and Erotic Embodiments(Routledge, May 2021). They talk about sex, sexuality, gender, educating providers, the brilliance of trans people, and so much more. Please be aware that in this episode Alex and Lucie talk about sex in a transparent and explicit way. CN: mentions of genitals, dysphoria, and cisgenderism.

Lucie Fielding, MA (she/they) is a white, queer, non-binary femme, and a Resident in Counseling, practicing in Charlottesville, VA. She received her Master’s in Counseling Psychology at Pacifica Graduate Institute (2018). Lucie also holds a PhD in French from Northwestern University (2008), where she specialized in eighteenth-century literature, histories of sexualities, and erotic literature. Her background in literature and history attunes her to the many ways that image, metaphor, and cultural scripts shape and inform the narratives we carry with us as we move through the world as well as how these narratives inscribe themselves on our bodies. You can find out more about Lucie at https://luciefielding.com and follow her on Instagram and Twitter.

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Alex Iantaffi interviews Dr. Angela Kade Goepferd about puberty blockers, in light of the Bell V Tavistock decision in the UK. They discuss why this decision is relevant in the UK and beyond, what puberty blockers are (and what is puberty), as well as the reasons why this is such a safe and effective treatment for some trans, nonbinary, and/or gender expansive children and youth. Angela Kade Goepferd, MD (she/they),is the Chief Education Officer for Children’s Minnesota, Chief of Staff, pediatrician in the Children’s Minneapolis Primary Care clinic and medical director of Children’s Gender Health Program.

Dr. Goepferd has a passion for working with underserved and at-risk kids and families, speaks Spanish and cares for a diverse community of patients in the primary care clinic. In addition to running the academic education and health professional education programs for Children’s, Dr. Goeperd is the Chief of the Professional Staff. They are a leader in the LGBTQ community who is driving equitable care for LGBTQ youth, particularly transgender and gender expansive youth and is a sought after speaker and trainer on these topics. They were a member of the LGBT Standards of Care Advisory board, which developed the first healthcare standards for LGBT people in the state of Minnesota, and have been a recipient of one of the inaugural Business of Pride awards from the Minneapolis/St. Paul Business Journal in 2018, and winner of a special recognition award from the American Academy of Pediatrics in 2019 for advocacy and education about LGBTQ youth. In 2020 they gave their first TEDx talk, titled “The revolutionary truth about kids and gender identity” as part of TEDxMinneapolis.

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Alex Iantaffi talks about gender and sex in medieval times with Dr Eleanor Janega, a medieval historian. More specifically, Dr Janega specialises in late medieval sexuality, apocalyptic thought, propaganda, and the urban experience in general, and in central Europe more particularly. She has taught (and still teaches) medieval and early modern history at a number of universities across London, in the UK. Her work can be found in History Today, at the BBC History magazine, at sex education websites such as BISH, and on discerning erotica sites such as Frolic Me.
Content warning: this conversation might change the way you think about the middle ages. Also, they talk about sex, a lot. Apparently, it's a medieval thing.
You can follow Dr Janega on Twitter @GoingMedieval, support her work on Patreon, read her blog and pre-oder her book The Middle Ages: A Graphic History, illustrated by Neil Max Emmanuel.

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Alex Iantaffi and Meg-John Barker interview one another about self-care  from a trauma-informed perspective. They talk about what self-care is, why embodiment matters, and how individual and collective trauma impact our capacity to care for ourselves and others. Their new book "Hell Yeah Self-Care!: A Trauma-Informed Workbook" will be published by Jessica Kingsley Publishers in January 2021 (but you can  pre-order it now).

This talk was given as part of The Embodiment Conference. However, both Alex and Meg-John want to be clear that their participation is not an endorsement of the conference.  In fact, they invite you to read the open letter about the conference that Tada Hozumi wrote at: https://medium.com/@tadahozumi/public-letter-to-mark-walsh-and-the-embodiment-conference-ab9319ee4b69

Alex and Meg-John hold their participation in the event with open hands and with as much transparency as possible. Thank you for listening!

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Alex Iantaffi talks gender and parenting with Dr. Kyl Myers, a sociologist, educator, and globally recognized advocate of gender creative parenting. Kyl’s TEDx talk, Want Gender Equality? Let’s Get Creative, encourages people to rethink childhood gender socialization in an effort to break up the binary before it begins. Kyl is the creator of www.raisingzoomer.com and the @raisingzoomer Instagram account, advocating for letting kids be kids in an environment where everything is for everyone. Kyl has been featured in articles in international media, including New York, HuffPost UK, and MamaMia. Kyl lives with their family in Salt Lake City, Utah, and can be found providing bite-size gender studies lessons on their @kyl_myers Instagram account. They can also be found atkylmyers.com. Raising Them: Our Adventure in Gender Creative Parenting is their first book from TOPPLE Books.

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In this joint episode of Gender Stories and the Meg-John & Justin podcast, Alex Iantaffi and Meg-John Barker continue the conversation with Deana Ayers about abolition. They discuss how abolition needs to be addressed at the cultural, community, and interpersonal levels as well as in the inner work each one us needs to do to make this vision a reality.

Deana Ayers is 21 year old Black, nonbinary organizer. They graduated in May 2020 with a Bachelor of Social Work degree from the University of North Texas. As a college student they were involved with student government, reproductive justice organizing, and a push for transformative justice and police abolition. They are currently living in Minneapolis, MN with their girlfriend, where they work as a Political Education Coordinator at an abolitionist organization. You can check out their writing and organizing work at deanajayers.com and follow them on Twitter @deanajayers. 

Deana's call to action is to support ZACAH's efforts in providing emergency housing to the unsheltered residents of Minneapolis: https://www.zacah.org/minneapolis-sanctuary-emergency-res

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This episode was originally recorded as a Facebook live in June 2020 by your host, Alex Iantaffi. Here are some of their thoughts and reflections about gender and trauma during Pride season.
CN: Mentions of domestic violence, systemic violence, and racist and transmisogynistic violence when discussing the case of Cece Mc Donald.

If you are inteested in engaging in ongoing conversations on gender, you can join the Gender Stories Facebook Group.

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Alex Iantaffi discusses prison abolition with Deana Ayers, a 21 years old Black, nonbinary organizer. They graduated in May 2020 with a Bachelor of Social Work degree from the University of North Texas. As a college student Deana was involved with student government, reproductive justice organizing, and a push for transformative justice and police abolition. They are currently living in Minneapolis, MN with their girlfriend, where they are interning for an economic justice organization and writing articles about prison industrial complex abolition, political education, and the social work profession. You can check out their published articles in their portfolio at deanajayers.journoportfolio.com and follow them on Twitter @deanajayers.

Deana's call to action is to support a working class Latinx community in their journey to getting clean water: https://www.gofundme.com/f/green-tree-estates-water-relief?fbclid=IwAR34nStg63fv9Lg3T2z9FNIk17G_wEV6zH5vPjN2_yJSwkRnzOGN-QYOZ40

If you want to find out more about prison abolition in Minneapolis, check out the following websites: MPD 150 https://www.mpd150.com/ and Black Visions Collective https://www.blackvisionsmn.org/

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Alex Iantaffi interviews Addison Rose Vincent (they/them), a 27-year-old queer transfeminine nonbinary advocate from Los Angeles, CA. Born in Canada and raised in Michigan, Addison moved to California at the age of 17 to come out as part of the LGBTQ+ community and pursue their dreams. Since graduating from Chapman University with a major in Peace Studies in 2015, they have worked for several Los Angeles non-profit organizations providing direct services to LGBTQ+ people facing sexual or domestic violence, housing insecurity, unemployment, addiction, and risk for HIV. Addison now serves as the Executive Director of the Nonbinary & Intersex Recognition Project (NIRP), a national advocacy organization working to create third gender options (X) on state IDs and help end invasive "corrective" surgeries on intersex youth. Addison is also the Founder & Lead Consultant of Break The Binary LLC, the Founder of the Non-Binary Union of Los Angeles (NBULA), and the Co-Director of History Reimagined.
NIRP: www.intersexrecognition.org
Email info@intersexrecognition.org
Break The Binary LLC: www.breakthebinaryllc.com
Addison's Instagram page: @breakthebinary

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Content warning: mentions of transphobia in healthcare towards the end of the talk during the Q&A
This is a talk given by Alex Iantaffi at the University of Minnesota for the School of Nursing (co-sponsored by the Office of Equity and Diversity and by the Gender and Sexuality Center for Trans and Queer Life). Here's the description of the talk:
Gender liberation is often viewed as beneficial for trans, nonbinary or gender expansive people. In this talk, Dr. Iantaffi posits how a rigid gender binary is part of the ongoing settler-colonial project and, as such, it is a form of historical, cultural and social trauma that impacts everyone's health, albeit in different ways. Gender liberation, in this context, is then not only desirable for everyone, but also essential to the larger framework of healing justice, within which healing can be viewed as collective, interdependent, and sustainably rooted in community.

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In this special joint episode of Gender Stories and the Meg-John & Justin podcast, Meg-John Barker and Alex Iantaffi reflect on how a non-binary approach might influence the way we approach the COVID-19 crisis. 

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In this solo episode, your host, Dr Alex Iantaffi reflects on the impact of gender during the COVID-19 public health crisis. How does the way in which we are gendered influence the ways in which we are impacted by this pandemic? Why is talking about gender relevant and necessary at this time? Listen to find out what Alex thinks and feel free to share your thoughts and experiences by emailing them at genderstoriespodcast@gmail.com
You can also support the podcast on Patreon. Thank you for listening.

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In this episode Alex Iantaffi interviews award-winning educator, curriculum writer and sexologist Bianca I Laureano. In fact, they had so much fun that their conversation is split between two episodes, so make sure to listen to both part 1 & 2. Bianca is a founding member of the Women of Color Sexual Health Network (WOCSHN) and The LatiNegrxs Project. Her most recent project is ANTE UP! a virtual freedom school for justice workers offering professional development and certification we need for doing the work during these challenging times. Bianca earned her BA in Individual Studies with a focus on Latina Sexualities in 2000 from the University of Maryland, College Park. She earned a Masters of Arts from NYU in Human Sexuality Education in 2002 and a second Masters of Arts from the University of Maryland in Women’s Studies with a focus on sexualities, race, and racialization in 2006. While at UM she was a CrISP Scholar at the Consortium on Race, Gender, and Ethnicity and helped create the Intersectional Research Database. She has written several curricula that focus on communities of color: What’s the REAL DEAL about Love and Solidarity? (2015) and Communication MixTape: Speak On It Vol 1. (2017) and wrote the sexual and reproductive justice discussion guide for the NYC Department of Health and Mental Hygiene published in 2018. Bianca has been on the board of CLAGS, the LGBTQ Center at CUNY, and The Black Girl Project; and is currently on the SisterSong board. She currently resides in Oakland, CA with her core partner G and is an AASECT certified sexuality educator and supervisor. Find out more about Bianca at her website BiancaLaureano.com and about ANTE UP! at www.AnteUpPD.com You can also follow Bianca on Facebook. Bianca's call to action is to support the wonderful Patty Berne's GoFundMe!

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In this episode Alex Iantaffi interviews award-winning educator, curriculum writer and sexologist Bianca I Laureano. In fact, they had so much fun that their conversation is split between two episodes, so make sure to listen to both parts. Bianca is a founding member of the Women of Color Sexual Health Network (WOCSHN) and The LatiNegrxs Project. Her most recent project is ANTE UP! a virtual freedom school for justice workers offering professional development and certification we need for doing the work during these challenging times. Bianca earned her BA in Individual Studies with a focus on Latina Sexualities in 2000 from the University of Maryland, College Park. She earned a Masters of Arts from NYU in Human Sexuality Education in 2002 and a second Masters of Arts from the University of Maryland in Women’s Studies with a focus on sexualities, race, and racialization in 2006. While at UM she was a CrISP Scholar at the Consortium on Race, Gender, and Ethnicity and helped create the Intersectional Research Database. She has written several curricula that focus on communities of color: What’s the REAL DEAL about Love and Solidarity? (2015) and Communication MixTape: Speak On It Vol 1. (2017) and wrote the sexual and reproductive justice discussion guide for the NYC Department of Health and Mental Hygiene published in 2018. Bianca has been on the board of CLAGS, the LGBTQ Center at CUNY, and The Black Girl Project; and is currently on the SisterSong board. She currently resides in Oakland, CA with her core partner G and is an AASECT certified sexuality educator and supervisor. Find out more about Bianca at her website BiancaLaureano.com and about ANTE UP! at www.AnteUpPD.com You can also follow Bianca on Facebook. Bianca's call to action is to support the wonderful Patty Berne's GoFundMe!

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Alex Iantaffi interviews Cassandra Snow, author of Queering the Tarot. Cassandra Snow (they/them/she/her) is a professional tarot card reader, teacher, writer, and theatre maker in Minneapolis, MN. Cassandra believes tarot is a powerful tool for insight that leads to healing that leads to liberation and empowerment. Their tarot practice centers around empowerment of queer seekers, overcoming personal trauma, practical step by step business or creative plans and spiritual guidance. As a writer, tarot is also one of Cassandra's focuses, and she penned the long running queer journey through the tarot, Queering the Tarot at Thecolu.mn and Little Red Tarot, now available on Patreon. This series has been turned into a book through RedWheel/Wieser Publishing and was released in May 2019! Cassandra's writing has been featured not only on their own blog and at Little Red Tarot, but at Take Your Pills (a mental health blog), and Howlround. Cassandra also served as Contributing Arts Editor at TheColu.mn until its closing. Cassandra also runs Gadfly Theatre Productions, a queer and feminist theatre company in Minneapolis, MN who makes queer art by and for queer people. They serve as co-artistic director for the company and have for the past ten years. Cassandra has been reading tarot for over about 14 years and has "gone pro" for about 9 years. You can find out more at www.cassandra-snow.com. Their instagram handle is tarotcassandra and they offer daily tarot guidance and advice there and on their community style patreon at patreon.com/cassandrasnow

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Alex Iantaffi interviews Jackson Bird about his first book - Sorted: Growing Up, Coming Out, and Finding My Place -  as well as being a trans creator and so much more! Jackson Bird is a writer and digital creator dedicated to demystifying the transgender experience by sharing his and others’ stories online. You can hear some of those stories on his YouTube channel jackisnotabird. A TED Resident and Speaker, Jackson’s TED Talk “How to talk (and listen) to transgender people” has been viewed over a million times. Jackson was also a 2018 GLAAD Rising Star Digital Innovator, a YouTube NextUp Creator, and a LogoTV Social Trailblazer nominee. Currently a Civic Media Fellow at the University of Southern California’s Annenberg Innovation Lab, he is also known for his past work with the Harry Potter Alliance. Jackson lives in New York City, where he regularly puts his apartment at risk with his slapdash YouTube series, Will It Waffle? You can follow him online @jackisnotabird 

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Alex Iantaffi interviews the creator, host and producer of the weekly, award-winning podcast Gender Reveal. Molly Woodstock is a journalist, audio producer, and inclusivity educator. They are queer and trans and biracial and other things. Molly frequently leads diversity & equity workshops with an emphasis in transgender topics. They have been featured as a gender educator in the New York Times, NPR, Washington Post, SF Chronicle, and other publications. They were a 2019 Third Coast/Ragdale radio resident and a 2019 Third Coast featured speaker. Molly has previously worked as a health editor, a vegan food writer, and the editor of the Portland visitors guide. They’ve written 500+ articles for various publications and edited hundreds more. Their bylines include such outlets as the Washington Post, Bitch, and Portland Monthly,You can find out more about Molly and their work at https://mollywoodstock.com/

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Alex Iantaffi interviews Sam Lofgren. They are the owner of Companion in Shadow and are dedicated to helping folks in transitional times find clarity and affirmation. They offer services as a 20+ year professional tarot reader and educator; death, abortion, and loss doula; shadow work specialist; and jewelry artisan, exploring the intersections of divination and death. Sam is the author of Tarot of Little Secrets, and the column "Death Needs a Bureaucrat" (on the paperwork involved with end of life planning). Their call to action is for folks to complete their end of life/advanced planning paperwork, to ensure their decisions about their care are honored and respected. You can find out more about Sam's work at companioninshadow.com or follow them on Instagram and Facebook  @companioninshadow 

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Alex Iantaffi interviews De Ana Jones and the conversation is wide-ranging: from why we need diverse games, what stories we choose to tell and how conventions can be more truly inclusive. De Ana Jones is a blogger and podcaster from Southern California who in elementary school learned that the stories in her head were easier to keep track of on paper. She previously liked to talk about nerdy things on the Nerdgasm Noire podcast (and hopes to start again soon) and currently enjoys playing Indie RPGs with The Reclaimers group on the I Need Diverse Games twitch channel. She's had fiction previously published in Hidden Youth by Crossed Genres and an essay published by Fireside Fiction. She's also working on a web comic (https://www.patreon.com/hexschoolforgirls) and is a self-proclaimed Professional Smartass on twitter as @NaniCoolJ.

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Dr Alex Iantaffi moderates a live panel discussing 10 years of Reclaim, an organization devoted to to increasing access to mental health support for queer and trans youth so they might reclaim their lives from oppression in all of its forms. The panelists are: Janet Bystrom, Reclaim's Founder; Autumn Brown, Co-Host of the Podcast How to Survive the End of the World and former interim Executive Director of Reclaim; and Reclaim Alum Elizabeth Soleayst. They discuss Reclaim's history, how the organization touched their lives and the way in which their gender stories were shaped by Reclaim. If you're interested in queer and trans youth, mental health and healing justice, this episode is for you.
If you would like to find out more about Reclaim, please visit https://www.reclaim.care/

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Dr Alex Iantaffi interviews Dan Hinz, MBA about money and relationships. Dan is the gentle soul and financial coach behind Adulting With Money. For six years, Dan has taught newlyweds how to be on the same page with money and stop money fights before they start. His 20,000+ word ebook, How to Talk About Money with Your Spouse: The Ultimate Guide, teaches couples how to focus on meaningful, lifelong habits and sprinkles in some helpful hacks. To download the free guide "How to talk about money with you spouse; the ultimate guide", please go to: adultingwithmoney.com/GS

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Dr Alex Iantaffi interviews Lex Pulice-Farrow about their research on the experiences of nonbinary people in romantic relationships. They discuss the opposite of microaggressions, that is microaffirmations of nonbinary identities and experiences in romantic relationships, as well as the joys and challenges of dating as a nonbinary person. Lex Pulice-Farrow is a second-year graduate student in the Counseling Psychology doctoral program at the University of Tennessee - Knoxville. They work with Dr. Kirsten Gonzalez, and, presently, their work focuses on positive psychology of transgender, nonbinary, and gender non-conforming individuals and their experiences of community connection and belongingness. Lex hopes to someday become a professor, and use their research to advocate for policy changes of gender and sexual minority individuals. Outside of research, Lex competes in short-course triathlons, enjoys cooking, video games, reading, and hiking in East Tennessee, as well as spending time with their fiancee, dog, and cat. You can find Lex's publications at: https://www.researchgate.net/profile/Lex_Pulice-Farrow and follow them on twitter @LexPuliceFarrow

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Alex Iantaffi and Root Holden recorded a live episode during the Podcast Movement Conference in Orlando, Florida on August 14th, 2019. They comment on the conference through the lens of gender and discuss Root's upcoming podcast Grave Decor. If you want to get a sense of what podcasters are up to when we all come together for the largest gathering in the US, this episode is for you!

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Dr Alex Iantaffi discusses the often hidden and gendered labor of making vacations happen, for those who have the privilege to do so. They break down the various components of vacations, from decision making to underlying assumptions underpinning our choices, and how gender might influence all of these things. 

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Alex Iantaffi interviews Dr. Pavini Moray (pronoun: Pe), a somatic sex therapist in private practice, about changing pe's gender marker in California, erotic liberation, ancestral healing and gender blessed ancestors. Working through a trauma-informed, pleasure-centric lens, Pavini works with individuals and couples who wish to resolve the past, inhabit their bodies and their pleasure, and learn to speak their desires. Pavini hosts the podcasts “Bespoken Bones: Ancestors at the crossroads of sex, magick, and science”  and, launching in September 2019, “The Well-Pleasured Podcast.” As a queer trans witch, Pavini walks the glitter path of dancing bones, ridiculous delight and old magick. You can find out more about Pavini at: https://www.emancipating-sexuality.com/ Listen to Bespoken Bones at: https://bespokenbones.com/ or follow on Instagram @bespokenbones

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CN: This episode addresses various forms of trauma. Please take care of yourself if you choose to listen. Thank you.
For PTSD (Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder) Awareness Month, Alex Iantaffi talks about how complex PTSD and developmental trauma can impact our nervous systems, why gender matters when discussing trauma and how neuroplasticity gives us hope.

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Alex Iantaffi interviews CN Lester, a writer, musician, academic, and leading LGBTI activist. CN is the co-founder of the UK's first national queer youth organisation, they curate the trans art event Transpose for the Barbican, and work internationally as a trans and feminist educator and speaker. Their work has featured on BBC Radio 3, BBC Radio 4, SBS, The Guardian, ABC, The Independent, Newsnight, and at Sydney Opera House. Alex and CN talk about 17th century composer Barbara Strozzi, gender and CN's internationally acclaimed book "Trans Like Me". 

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Alex Iantaffi reflects on the value of sisterhood in their life as a survivor and on losing a sense of belonging after they came out as trans. They look at their life and how their survival has in the past depended on using 'women's services' while exploring their own gender identity. Alex addresses domestic and sexual violence as gendered violence and invites the listeners to join them on a journey that honors their past while troubling easy binaries. 
CN: This episode contains mentions of domestic violence, abuse and sexual assault.

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Dr Markie Twist facilitates a panel of generation z members, ranging from elementary school age to first year college students. The panel took place live at the University of Wisconsin-Stout and Gender Stories had the privilege to record these insightful young people as they discuss gender in their generation!

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On Trans Day of Visibility, Alex Iantaffi talks to Root Holden, a trans masculine, nonbinary person living on Anishinaabe territory, currently known as Minneapolis. They are a Reclaiming witch, podcast producer (for this podcast!), and have twenty years of experience in the tech industry. They talk about visibility across gender, geographical location, at work and as a pagan. Root talks about the process of becoming more visible to themselves in their own gender journey and how this impacted them. 

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Alex Iantaffi offers some reflections on self-consent and gender expressions and roles. They start from defining self-consent using Sophie Graham's article at https://loveuncommon.com/2017/09/28/self-consent/ and then discuss why self-consent matters when it comes to gender, how it may be constrained by issues of power and privilege and how we're impacted by social and cultural pressures, which might get in the way of respecting our own needs, desires and boundaries around gender.

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In this episode Meg-John Barker and Alex Iantaffi answer a series of questions about all things non-binary posed by their publisher, Jessica Kingsley, to celebrate LGBT History Month in the UK and their upcoming book, Life Isn't Binary (to be published in May 2019). 

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This episode is all about language. Alex Iantaffi reflects on the multiple ways in which language and gender are connected and can define one another. They invite us to look at language through the lens of gender and to reflect on what we might open up or close down with our linguistic choices. As well as offering some definitions of words like trans, cis and non-binary, which have already been used on the show, they also invite us to look at gendered words such as madam, lady, gentleman, handsome and pretty from a more intentional perspective. If you would like to deepen this conversation, you can check out Alex's website at www.alexiantaffi.com, their book "How To Understand You Gender" and the upcoming book "Life Isn't Binary", both co-authored with Meg-John Barker. 

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In this episode, Marcel Byrd talks with our host, Alex Iantaffi, about dance, how it intersects with gender and other aspects of identity, such as race, and the joy it can bring us. Marcel Byrd is a 25 year old dancer and public health activist that has been living in the Washington DC area for a little more than three years. An avid lover of health equity, dance, and social justice, Marcel aims to better health and wellness outcomes through creativity and access to the arts. Marcel is also about to co-host a brand new podcast These Colored Pages. You can soon find out more at thesecoloredpages.com or follow their podcast on Twitter @TheColoredPages

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In this opening episode for season 2, our host, Alex Iantaffi gets vulnerable talking about the pressures they feel around holidays and especially times that mark a new year. They share how some of these pressures are gendered for them and also for other people. Alex talks about the pressures we might experience during these times when we might be expected to come together to celebrate cultural, religious or family holidays. They invite the listeners to consider an approach that privileges intentions over resolutions, kindness over obligation and compassion over trying to do it all. If you have ever felt pressured around the holidays, and especially marking new cycles, such as a new calendar year, this episode is for you. And, if you never have, maybe this episode might help you understand people around you who might feel this way. 

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In this episode, the amazing Naomi Ortiz discusses her contribution to the new anthology "Resistance and Hope: Essays by Disabled People", edited by Alice Wong. This anthology includes 16 essays by 17 disabled writers, activists, & artists. As Alice twitted "This is crip wisdom for the people"! Naomi Ortiz is a facilitator, writer, poet, and visual artist who cracks apart common beliefs and spills out beauty. Naomi is a nationally known writer, speaker and trainer on self-care, disability justice, and living in multiple worlds (intersectionality). She is a Disabled, Mestiza (Latina/Indigenous/White), raised in Latinx culture, living in the U.S./Mexico borderlands. Naomi’s book, Sustaining Spirit: Self Care for Social Justice invites readers to delve into what self-care means in their lives by exploring the relationships between body, mind, spirit, heart, and place to integrate self-care to survive and thrive. Caring about the world should not burn us out. Sustaining Spirit: Self-Care for Social Justice shows us how to balance activism with self-care. "Every page of this spiritual book is a gift, full of poignant stories, poetic metaphors, insightful questions, and practical suggestions to sustain ourselves as activists over the long-term." - Lisa Hoffman, International Human Rights activist. To find out more about Naomi, you can visit: www.NaomiOrtiz.com, follow her on Twitter @ThinkFreestyle and on Instagram @NaomiOrtizWriterArtist
To find out more about and order the anthology edited by Alice Wong, please visit: https://disabilityvisibilityproject.com/resist/

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Justin Hancock, a fantastic, experienced and qualified UK-based sex and relationships educator chats with Alex Iantaffi about the role of gender in sex education, consent, power and privilege and so much more! Justin is also the co-host of the fabulous Meg-John & Justin podcast, as well as co-author (with Meg-John Barker) of Enjoy Sex (How, when and IF you want to). You can find his podcast and educational zines co-created with Meg-John Barker at https://megjohnandjustin.com/ Find out about their training courses and resources at https://bishtraining.com/ and find their sex education website for everyone over 14 at https://www.bishuk.com/Support the show (https://www.patreon.com/genderstories)

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Dr. Meg-John Barker, amazing UK-based scholar, therapist, author, sex and relationship expert and Alex's friend for the past 15 years, as well as co-author of "How To Understand You Gender", shares vulnerable insights on writing, vulnerability and, of course, gender, as well as so much more! Join us at the kitchen table for a warm and vulnerable conversation on so many topics close to our hearts.Support the show (https://www.patreon.com/genderstories)

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An interview with Dave Pickering, an award-winning storyteller, podcaster and creator from the UK. Dave has written and performed for BBC Radio 4 and in 2017 his podcast Getting Better Acquainted won a British Podcast Award. Dave talks vulnerably about storytelling, masculinity, including his own, and his upcoming book "Mansplaining Masculinity". CW: in this episode, we talk about bullying, street harassment and sexual violence. You can find out more about Dave's work at: http://dave-pickering.squarespace.com or follow him and his projects on Twitter at: @goosefat101 @standup4tragedy @GBApodcast @sparkLDN and you can find the book at: https://unbound.com/books/mansplaining-masculinity/Support the show (https://www.patreon.com/genderstories)

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Alex Iantaffi interviews the wonderful author and 2015 winner of the Tiptree Literary Award Pat Schmatz. They talk about language, writing non-binary characters and so much more. You can find out more about Pat's wonderful books at http://www.patschmatz.comSupport the show (https://www.patreon.com/genderstories)

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Content warning: in this episode we talk about body image issues and sexual assault. In this episode, Alex Iantaffi interviews the formidable Erica Hanna, a speaker, video maker, activist and consultant, six time Emmy Award winner, Nobel Peace Prize Forum Social Media Ambassador, and Twitter personality for Minneapolis. Erica is the owner of Puke Rainbow, a business focusing on content strategy, video production, and education in these areas. She also raises funds for nonprofit @charitywater through social media and she has worked with Ellen Degeneres and Prince. We discuss topics such as being a video maker, running your own business, body image, visual diet, and sexual violence. You can find out more about Erica's work at http://www.pukerainbows.com/ or follow her on Twitter @meetericaSupport the show (https://www.patreon.com/genderstories)

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In this episode, Alex Iantaffi interviews the incomparable Arique Aguilar, lead organizer at TakeAction Minnesota, about what it means to be a political healer, how she came up with this concept and why this work is so relevant at the intersection of race and gender. They had so much fun in this conversation that they talked for longer than one episode so please check out episode 4 for the second part of the conversation! You can follow Arique on Twitter at @arique777Support the show (https://www.patreon.com/genderstories)

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In this episode, Alex Iantaffi continues the interview with the incomparable Arique Aguilar, lead organizer at TakeAction Minnesota, about what it means to be a political healer, how she came up with this concept and why this work is so relevant at the intersection of race and gender. They had so much fun in this conversation that they talked for longer than one episode so please check out episode 3 for the first part of the conversation, if you haven't already! You can follow Arique on Twitter at @arique777Support the show (https://www.patreon.com/genderstories)

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In episode 2 of Gender Stories, Alex Iantaffi interviews the wonderful conductor Erik Peregrine (https://www.erikperegrine.com/), artistic director of Ensemble Companio, music director of the Woodbury Chorus & Orchestra, assistant conductor for One Voice Mixed Chorus, and artistic consultant for Caritas Vocal Ensemble. They talk about the upcoming Transgender Voices Festival in the Twin Cities on April 13 and 14 2018 (http://www.onevoicemn.org/performances/season-calendar/events/transgender-voices-festival/) and why and how to include voices of all genders! Support the show (https://www.patreon.com/genderstories)

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In this episode you can learn more about the podcast. Alex Iantaffi, the host, talks about why they decided to launch this podcast, what you can expect and how often podcast episodes will be released.Support the show (https://www.patreon.com/genderstories)