There’s nothing quite as empowering as watching a crowd part for a strong trans woman decked out to the nines strutting her stuff because she knows she is, in fact, that woman. This was a frequent sight to behold at this weekend’s TRANSforming Gender Conference (TGC) hosted in the Koebel building. Put on by the Pride Office and a team of volunteers, the conference aimed to discuss the ways in which we express, explore, and transform gender both in our academic and personal lives.
I took part in this year’s conference both as an attendee and as a volunteer. Despite having to rise at 7:00 a.m. to make my morning shift (a choice entirely self-inflicted), I can say with full confidence that the conference was a smashing success.
With over 50 workshops to choose from, three incredible keynote speakers, 600 grapefruit-sized muffins, and hundreds of queer voices, this was the place to be this Patrick’s Day weekend. I arrived at 8:30 to help set up for the busy day ahead and even in the early morning hours, all of us bleary eyed and shivering from the cold, the energy was palpable. Volunteers decked out in purple t-shirts sporting the TGC logo dashed back and forth hanging signs, setting up booths, and chowing down on chocolate chip muffins. Our program leaders Sonya, Morgan, Tamara, and Franklin were an unstoppable force as they navigated the process: directing volunteers, setting up workshop leaders, and helping attendees register. And in the midst of all the chaos was little old me, clutching two yellow folders with the names of my assigned workshops scribbled out in bold blank ink splashed across the cover. I was ready.
Workshops started at 9:30 sharp with discussions covering everything from how to do ethical research within the community to what it means to celebrate and promote queer joy to creating your own gender superhero. I found my first workshop, “How to Find a Therapist Who Actually Gets You,” and after a fight with the door (which I won) I began to set up the room with the help of the workshop’s presenter, Felix J. Lefevre (they/them). As participants started filing in, I took my seat. I’d been to conferences before; in fact, most of my high school career involved attending and planning them. So I felt relatively prepared for what came next. And for the most part everything was business as usual. What I hadn’t been prepared for was the sheer joy in the room.
Conferences are usually a place to meet like-minded individuals, discuss ideas, and share experiences. What made TGC unique was that it was all of those things and it was a space of complete safety and acceptance. It’s difficult to put into words the feeling that was alive and breathing in that room. The closest thing I can compare it to is a deep, long awaited exhalation.
I cannot speak on behalf of the trans community, as I am a cisgendered woman, but I can speak from the perspective and experience of a queer woman. And that is to say that when you spend a majority of your time either hiding, defending, or justifying your existence, it’s a relief to finally be in a space where you have to do none of those things. That was the sentiment, the long exhalation, I felt in the room. In this moment, this small gap in space, you were safe as a queer, trans, and/or non-conforming individual to speak, exist, and express however you chose.
Here, pronouns were exchanged without a second thought, dress was a form of play and expression not a sign of conformity or normalcy, and the human spirit was both celebrated and honored for everything it was and not shamed for what it wasn’t. Questions were personal and vulnerable and the responses came from experience and care. Participants laughed and cried, reminded that no emotion was good or bad. That to feel was human and to express was natural.
The rest of the conference was similar. I helped facilitate another session titled “Tranfuturist Superheroes: Visionary Play for Radical Worldmaking” led by Dr. Amber Johnson (they/them). Again, as we sat clustered around small tables, passing glue and scissors and markers around to create our own superheroes: our own physical manifestations of our gender and its superpower, I felt the joy. Participants eagerly shared their designs, explained the stories and concepts behind them, explored what gender meant to them and learned about what it meant to others.
We had lunch at 12:15 in the C4C and I was reminded of how nice it was to have a meal prepared for you. I made a mental note to thank my mom for her years of cooking and apologize for every time I had complained about eating my broccoli.
The rest of the day comprised workshops and two keynote speakers, Teddy Syrette (they/them) and Zooey Zephyr (she/her). Participants filed out at 5:30, more energized and invigorated than before.
The following day, which started at 7:30 for me instead of 7:00, was similar. I attended and helped facilitate the “Pleasure, Toys, and Play for EveryBODY” workshop where we created an open, safe, and humorous space to talk about sex, pleasure, relationships, and intimacy as queer individuals. It was the first time in my life a sex ed conversation had diverted from heterosexual norms and relationships.
Hayden Kristal (they/them) was our keynote speaker for the day and the conference ended with a final round of sessions.
It’s difficult to explain what the TRANSforming Gender Conference was for me. It’s difficult to sum up its impact using my limited vocabulary. In all honesty, I’m not sure the English language has the vocabulary necessary to accurately describe the feelings that the conference brought forth for me.
Here, in this wonderfully queer and diverse place, there was a sense of safety, acceptance, and community you can’t find easily in the rest of the world, especially as a queer individual. Here, there was an unspoken understanding that if you came as you were, if you were kind and honest and authentically you, there would be a place for you. Where your worth was not defined by your presentation or your ability to mask, your manner of speaking or way of learning. Where if you brought something new to the table–may it be a way of thinking, speaking, presenting, or existing–it would not be shunned or dismissed, but rather approached with curiosity and a desire for understanding and exploration. Where imperfection was celebrated and growth was inevitable.
In my lifetime, I have only experienced places like this a few times before. I’m happy to say I can now add the TRANSforming Gender Conference to that list. I give my compliments and thanks to all those who worked to put on this amazing event, to all those who volunteered to ensure smooth operations, to all those who led workshops, to all those who participated and to all those who helped create this place of community, acceptance, and defiance.