Abstract Using collective biographical narrative, this paper examines the ways in which school sp... more Abstract Using collective biographical narrative, this paper examines the ways in which school spaces – even in socioculturally and politically conservative locations – might serve to empower trans youth. The authors explore the ways that teacher, peer and curricular interactions enabled them to navigate a range of cultural spaces and arrive at authentic selves who advocate on behalf of trans youth.
Background: The current United States presidential administration’s statements and policies have,... more Background: The current United States presidential administration’s statements and policies have, in a shockingly short time, catastrophically affected people of color and LGBTQIA + communities. An...
There are “three strikes” that inform my daily interactions and educational efforts: (1) race, be... more There are “three strikes” that inform my daily interactions and educational efforts: (1) race, because I am Black; (2) gender expression, because I am a woman; (3) gender identity, because I am trans. As a transwoman of color—perhaps the most vulnerable population in the USA to sexual assault and murder—I work hard to educate others with an intersectional pedagogy, while being constantly aware that the ways that others see and understand me affect not just their engagement with my teaching, but sometimes my very safety. My narrative in this chapter reflects those fears and efforts through a particularly moving teaching moment.
Background: The current United States presidential administration’s statements and policies
have,... more Background: The current United States presidential administration’s statements and policies have, in a shockingly short time, catastrophically affected people of color and LGBTQIA+ communities. And although these numerous discriminatory policies and policy revisions have negatively affected both US people of color and LGBTQIA+ people, trans women of color have been disproportionately affected. Even more specifically, when focusing on vulnerability to violence—including murder—it is Black trans women who are most directly affected by the intersections of transphobia and racism in the US. This article explores a Black trans woman’s experiences with mental health professionals across two decades and different regions of the US. Aims: This article argues for the necessity of understanding trans people’s mental health experiences as necessarily intersectional, in order to more fully appreciate and address the degrees to which factors such as race, socioeconomic class, and geographic context matter in trans people’s efforts to access ethical and effective mental healthcare. Methods: Using a theoretical framework informed by Kimberle Crenshaw’s single-axis concept, the authors fully center Aryah’s intersectional experiences and counter a single-axis in exploring trans mental health issues, our article relies on a narrative-based approach. As narrative inquiry is a broad field, we selected Butler-Kisber’s narrative analytic approach, “Starting with the Story” as our method. The narratives are pulled from approximately 10 intensive qualitative interviews over the course of several months. Discussion: These narratives disrupt the common threads in the literature that ignore the degrees to which race and class matter alongside being a trans woman. In addition, as we noted that nearly all of the mental health literature relied on large-scale survey-based data, this article offers a qualitative narrative exploration of Aryah’s experiences and works to humanize trans mental health challenges and needs, while emphasizing the multilayered oppressions and obstacles that affected Aryah.
Using collective biographical narrative, this paper examines the
ways in which school spaces – ev... more Using collective biographical narrative, this paper examines the ways in which school spaces – even in socioculturally and politically conservative locations – might serve to empower trans youth. The authors explore the ways that teacher, peer and curricular interactions enabled them to navigate a range of cultural spaces and arrive at authentic selves who advocate on behalf of trans youth.
Abstract Using collective biographical narrative, this paper examines the ways in which school sp... more Abstract Using collective biographical narrative, this paper examines the ways in which school spaces – even in socioculturally and politically conservative locations – might serve to empower trans youth. The authors explore the ways that teacher, peer and curricular interactions enabled them to navigate a range of cultural spaces and arrive at authentic selves who advocate on behalf of trans youth.
Background: The current United States presidential administration’s statements and policies have,... more Background: The current United States presidential administration’s statements and policies have, in a shockingly short time, catastrophically affected people of color and LGBTQIA + communities. An...
There are “three strikes” that inform my daily interactions and educational efforts: (1) race, be... more There are “three strikes” that inform my daily interactions and educational efforts: (1) race, because I am Black; (2) gender expression, because I am a woman; (3) gender identity, because I am trans. As a transwoman of color—perhaps the most vulnerable population in the USA to sexual assault and murder—I work hard to educate others with an intersectional pedagogy, while being constantly aware that the ways that others see and understand me affect not just their engagement with my teaching, but sometimes my very safety. My narrative in this chapter reflects those fears and efforts through a particularly moving teaching moment.
Background: The current United States presidential administration’s statements and policies
have,... more Background: The current United States presidential administration’s statements and policies have, in a shockingly short time, catastrophically affected people of color and LGBTQIA+ communities. And although these numerous discriminatory policies and policy revisions have negatively affected both US people of color and LGBTQIA+ people, trans women of color have been disproportionately affected. Even more specifically, when focusing on vulnerability to violence—including murder—it is Black trans women who are most directly affected by the intersections of transphobia and racism in the US. This article explores a Black trans woman’s experiences with mental health professionals across two decades and different regions of the US. Aims: This article argues for the necessity of understanding trans people’s mental health experiences as necessarily intersectional, in order to more fully appreciate and address the degrees to which factors such as race, socioeconomic class, and geographic context matter in trans people’s efforts to access ethical and effective mental healthcare. Methods: Using a theoretical framework informed by Kimberle Crenshaw’s single-axis concept, the authors fully center Aryah’s intersectional experiences and counter a single-axis in exploring trans mental health issues, our article relies on a narrative-based approach. As narrative inquiry is a broad field, we selected Butler-Kisber’s narrative analytic approach, “Starting with the Story” as our method. The narratives are pulled from approximately 10 intensive qualitative interviews over the course of several months. Discussion: These narratives disrupt the common threads in the literature that ignore the degrees to which race and class matter alongside being a trans woman. In addition, as we noted that nearly all of the mental health literature relied on large-scale survey-based data, this article offers a qualitative narrative exploration of Aryah’s experiences and works to humanize trans mental health challenges and needs, while emphasizing the multilayered oppressions and obstacles that affected Aryah.
Using collective biographical narrative, this paper examines the
ways in which school spaces – ev... more Using collective biographical narrative, this paper examines the ways in which school spaces – even in socioculturally and politically conservative locations – might serve to empower trans youth. The authors explore the ways that teacher, peer and curricular interactions enabled them to navigate a range of cultural spaces and arrive at authentic selves who advocate on behalf of trans youth.
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Papers by Aryah Lester
have, in a shockingly short time, catastrophically affected people of color and LGBTQIA+ communities. And although these numerous discriminatory policies and policy revisions have negatively affected both US people of color and LGBTQIA+ people, trans women of color have been disproportionately affected. Even more specifically, when focusing on vulnerability to violence—including murder—it is Black trans women who are most directly affected by the intersections of transphobia and racism in the US. This article explores a Black trans woman’s experiences with mental health professionals across two decades and different regions of the US.
Aims: This article argues for the necessity of understanding trans people’s mental health experiences as necessarily intersectional, in order to more fully appreciate and address the degrees to which factors such as race, socioeconomic class, and geographic context matter
in trans people’s efforts to access ethical and effective mental healthcare.
Methods: Using a theoretical framework informed by Kimberle Crenshaw’s single-axis concept, the authors fully center Aryah’s intersectional experiences and counter a single-axis in
exploring trans mental health issues, our article relies on a narrative-based approach. As narrative inquiry is a broad field, we selected Butler-Kisber’s narrative analytic approach, “Starting with the Story” as our method. The narratives are pulled from approximately 10
intensive qualitative interviews over the course of several months.
Discussion: These narratives disrupt the common threads in the literature that ignore the degrees to which race and class matter alongside being a trans woman. In addition, as we noted that nearly all of the mental health literature relied on large-scale survey-based data,
this article offers a qualitative narrative exploration of Aryah’s experiences and works to humanize trans mental health challenges and needs, while emphasizing the multilayered oppressions and obstacles that affected Aryah.
ways in which school spaces – even in socioculturally and politically
conservative locations – might serve to empower trans youth. The
authors explore the ways that teacher, peer and curricular interactions
enabled them to navigate a range of cultural spaces and arrive at
authentic selves who advocate on behalf of trans youth.
have, in a shockingly short time, catastrophically affected people of color and LGBTQIA+ communities. And although these numerous discriminatory policies and policy revisions have negatively affected both US people of color and LGBTQIA+ people, trans women of color have been disproportionately affected. Even more specifically, when focusing on vulnerability to violence—including murder—it is Black trans women who are most directly affected by the intersections of transphobia and racism in the US. This article explores a Black trans woman’s experiences with mental health professionals across two decades and different regions of the US.
Aims: This article argues for the necessity of understanding trans people’s mental health experiences as necessarily intersectional, in order to more fully appreciate and address the degrees to which factors such as race, socioeconomic class, and geographic context matter
in trans people’s efforts to access ethical and effective mental healthcare.
Methods: Using a theoretical framework informed by Kimberle Crenshaw’s single-axis concept, the authors fully center Aryah’s intersectional experiences and counter a single-axis in
exploring trans mental health issues, our article relies on a narrative-based approach. As narrative inquiry is a broad field, we selected Butler-Kisber’s narrative analytic approach, “Starting with the Story” as our method. The narratives are pulled from approximately 10
intensive qualitative interviews over the course of several months.
Discussion: These narratives disrupt the common threads in the literature that ignore the degrees to which race and class matter alongside being a trans woman. In addition, as we noted that nearly all of the mental health literature relied on large-scale survey-based data,
this article offers a qualitative narrative exploration of Aryah’s experiences and works to humanize trans mental health challenges and needs, while emphasizing the multilayered oppressions and obstacles that affected Aryah.
ways in which school spaces – even in socioculturally and politically
conservative locations – might serve to empower trans youth. The
authors explore the ways that teacher, peer and curricular interactions
enabled them to navigate a range of cultural spaces and arrive at
authentic selves who advocate on behalf of trans youth.