Queering Precedent

Stonewall veteran Christy Henderson-Jenkins’ epic life story includes a run-in with MLK, surviving the serial killer known as the Grim Sleeper, and an institutionalization at Bellevue Hospital that galvanized her dear friends Marsha P. Johnson and Sylvia Rivera. We’re closing out this series by centering the knowledge of the legal system that comes from lived experience.Stay in touch with us @theoutwordsarchive for more news, events, and conversations with queer elders!

Intersex activism power couple Anne and Suegee Tamar-Mattis met in the San Francisco Street Patrol, intervening in homophobic hate crimes. Together, they unpack the legal hurdles to ending intersex surgeries, the role of the trans community in the early intersex movement, and how “backlash is baked into any progress.”

Dr. Marci Bowers has been called “The Beyoncé of Bottom Surgery,” among other honorifics. She gets into the biological fallacy of binary sex, and the history of medical transition.

OUTWORDS is proud to present Queering Precedent, a new podcast dropping on May 22! Get a jolt of hope, history, and how-to with the LGBTQ+ elders who have shaped law and politics for trans, gender expansive, two spirit, and intersex communities. We’ll get up close and personal with both the legal system and with the legendary changemakers fighting for us.

From growing up walking past MLK’s house in Atlanta, to running Harvey Milk’s media campaign in San Francisco, Gwenn Craig’s lifetime of activism is next-level. Jae and Gwenn dive into their unique challenges as women of color, Gwenn’s journey, and why white nuns are “always on some extra stuff.” The Golden Queers is produced, hosted and edited by Jae Singh and Nico Raquel, with music provided by Karl Casey at White Bat Audio. Find the Golden Queers online at thegoldenqueers.org. Executive producers for The Outwords Archive are Jack MacCarthy and Bliss, and OUTWORDS’ executive director is Mason Funk. OUTWORDS captures, preserves, and shares the stories of LGBTQ+ elders, to build community and catalyze social change. More info at theoutwordsarchive.org. The Golden Queers is funded by a generous grant from the California State Library’s Oral History Project.Special thanks to this week's storyteller: Gwenn Craig. Additional thanks to Gordon Tan and Jude Patton.

After decades of burying her trans identity, attorney Mia Yamamoto deliberately publicized her transition as she came out to her clients, her colleagues, and the world. From a surprising moment of tenderness from a hanging judge, to the parallels between trans rights and reproductive rights, Nico and Mia unpack the power of visibility and advocacy.The Golden Queers is produced, hosted and edited by Jae Singh and Nico Raquel, with music provided by Karl Casey at White Bat Audio. Find the Golden Queers online at thegoldenqueers.org. Executive producers for The Outwords Archive are Jack MacCarthy and Bliss, and OUTWORDS’ executive director is Mason Funk. OUTWORDS captures, preserves, and shares the stories of LGBTQ+ elders, to build community and catalyze social change. More info at theoutwordsarchive.org. The Golden Queers is funded by a generous grant from the California State Library’s Oral History Project.Special thanks to this week's storyteller: Mia Yamamoto.

From standing up to the governor at 13 years old, to helping create the San Francisco Protocol Implementation Task Force to educate the city on how to treat trans people, Afro-Latinx trans artist and health educator Yoseñio V. Lewis is a lifelong activist. In this conversation with host Nico Raquel, Yoseñio shares how he strives to become both a role model for and collaborator with younger generations to shape the future. In response, Nico shares the importance of welcoming perspectives outside their "bubble," and Nico and Jae reflect on the complications of "looking queer."This limited-series audio endeavor is sponsored by California State Library and hosted by bilingual Storycorps veteran Nico Raquel and “Unapologetically Us” producer Je’nae Singh (a.k.a. Jae). Listen in as Nico and Jae do some deep engaging and listening with a rich array of California LGBTQIA2S+ elder activists and luminaries, reflecting on our community, our movement, and what older and younger generations have to learn from each other.The Golden Queers is produced, hosted and edited by Jae Singh and Nico Raquel, with music provided by Karl Casey at White Bat Audio. Find the Golden Queers online at thegoldenqueers.org. Executive producers for The Outwords Archive are Jack MacCarthy and Bliss, and OUTWORDS’ executive director is Mason Funk. OUTWORDS captures, preserves, and shares the stories of LGBTQ+ elders, to build community and catalyze social change. More info at theoutwordsarchive.org. The Golden Queers is funded by a generous grant from the California State Library’s Oral History Project. Special thanks to this week's storyteller: Yoseñio Lewis. Additional thanks to Lynnore Goldfarb and Julie Roley.

OUTWORDS presents the stories of five LGBTQ individuals from South Carolina to Oklahoma to Los Angeles, and the unique, courageous, and sometimes hilarious ways they navigated the tricky path of growing up queer in America. (This episode was first published in 2018.)Tune in for The Golden Queers, launching on June 24, 2022: thegoldenqueers.orgTo learn more about OUTWORDS, visit theoutwordsarchive.orgProducer: Cameron TennerFeaturing: Donna Sachet, Charlotte Wilson, Crisosto Apache, Rodney Church, Marianne Diaz, Miss Major Griffin-GracyMusic: Trilobite by Podington Bear, Skeptic by Podington Bear, Turquoise by Podington Bear, Mensa by Podington Bear, Lanky by Blue Dot Sessions, The One Shot by Blue Dot Sessions, Shadows in the Moonlight - Instrumental by Josh Woodward, Coast of Daylight by Gilman Mom, The Ally by Ikebe Shakedown, Southern Man by Sylvester, Ice Cream by Leo Rossa, Smolder by Podington Bear, Cold Summers by Blue Dot Sessions, Clouds Pass Softly Deux by Podington Bear, Floating in Space by Podington Bear, Rebel Blues by Sul Rebel, DJ by Jahzzar, Quittin’ Time by Patrick Lee