Mars has pale skin and red-black dark dyed hair, matching lipstick, a silver cross necklace and a heavy metal t-shirt. Mars is wearing faded black jeans and Converse style sneakers. Their parents are behind them, simply dressed, with a hand each on Mars' shoulders.

Notices where this attachment appears

1. Mx. Kit O'Connell (kitoconnell@kolektiva.social)'s status on Friday, 06-Jan-2023 03:54:33 JST Mx. Kit O'Connell

   One of the most personally meaningful projects I worked on in 2022 was collaborating with photographer Jesse Freidin to share his Are You OK? photo project, a collection of portraits of #trans and #nonbinary young people, with @TexasObserver magazine:
   https://www.texasobserver.org/trans-kids-youth-are-you-ok-photos/

   (📸Photos of #trans kids by Jesse Freidin / Are You OK? project, marked sensitive due to eye contact)

   #BestOf2022: As he pointed out when we spoke, it's so important to document these brave young people while we still can. One well-known #trans kid from #Texas, Kai Shappley, was forced to flee the state with her family in the time between when Jesse scheduled his photoshoot with her and his actual arrival here.

   Here's some more of what I wrote about this project, from my newsletter:

   I think it’s vital that journalists be focused on elevating the voices and stories of people like this. Too often, they’re speaking over us, and in doing so they endanger us. They ask questions about the validity of our existence, instead of asking how they can help us thrive.

   To create this story, I worked closely with the photographer, a #trans man, to ensure we did justice to these portraits. Everyone at the Observer, whether #queer or straight, understood that this was something very special. Even so I think, when you compare this photo essay to some other recent coverage of #trans folks in the mainstream #media, it shows the importance of people telling our own stories whenever possible.

   I look at this generation of #LGBTQIA young people, and I see kids who are so empowered to be themselves. They have opportunities we never got growing up. They also face threats most of us hardly dreamed about back then. In some ways, we’re already failing them: trans kids and their families have been forced to flee Texas already, and nowhere is completely safe. It’s up to all of us to protect them, to fight the bigots when they act up in our communities, and to keep these kids safe by any means necessary. After all, we only have each other.

   #photography #culture #transgender #journalism
   (Edit: Typo)