Trans Activist Project Reflection

By Venus

There was a burst of activism that flooded the 1990s with the release of Leslie Feinberg’s

pamphlet Transgender Liberation: A Movement Whose Time Has Come. This was part of the

beginning stages for the initial alliance between the broader LGBTQ+ community in seeking

social justice. When discussing Feinberg’s impact of the use of the term transgender, Tompkins

(2021) says “in this way, transgender became ties to social justice work and progressive gender

politics in the 1990s” (p. 4). The rooted activism in transgender history is undoubtedly influential

in the activist spaces we have today. Pursuing a trans activist project that promoted grassroots

efforts and solidarity with social justice and liberation was crucial to the formation of our project.

Crucial publications like Feinberg’s, as well as the boom of the internet and zine culture

in the 90s, were catalysts of knowledge being spread to queer youth across the world. However,

access to these resources is still extremely limited, especially to students and youth who need

accurate information and exposure to adequately prepare themselves. As highlighted by Hill &

Renn (2021), “Sex education is a major focus of activist attention. Trans-inclusive sex education

rejects binary categories of sex, sheds cisnormativity expectations regarding how individuals’

bodies develop through puberty, and includes information about managing transition, such as

healthy use of binders and puberty inhibitors” (p. 7). There are many reasons to advocate for

trans-inclusive healthcare, and broadening the world of sex education and the more information a

young person has, the more possibility they have for safe, healthy sexual encounters and a

transition journey that feels supported and informed.

This project centered around providing these kinds of resources to students at SOU as

well as advertise them to the larger community by promoting the “Let’s Talk About Sex”

educational lecture series hosted at SOU’s Social Justice & Equity Center, presented by local sex

and kink educator, Mx. Knotty. This series of talks is produced by their production company,

Knotty Productions, a nonbinary/trans/queer/disabled owned sex and kink education and shibari

performance production collective. They offer services all across the West Coast, from

performing at venues like Folsom Street Fair in San Francisco to teaching Boundaries & Kink

101 at Ashland’s very own As You Like It, a women-owned trans-inclusive sex education

resource and retail store. We planned to advocate for this event as it highlighted the issues

surrounding access to trans-inclusive sex education.

Representing the immediate needs of our community, Mx. Knotty provides their services

to all, with a service range of free tastings in sex and/or kink coaching, to sliding scale sessions

and group classes. The series of educational lectures at SOU aimed to utilize their knowledge

give college students and community members in attendance a welcoming and safe environment

to share, ask questions, and receive resources for personal inquiries in furthering their knowledge

in sex and kink education. Increasing awareness of this event was the first part of our project as

increasing access to information was the basis of our pursuit. Lack of information can be

influenced by many factors, such as social class, physical and intellectual disabilities, and access

to resources. There are many intersecting identities that can be influenced and impacted by

proper sex education, and activism is all about increasing access for everybody.

Typically, because of social construction of disabilities, the greater amount of society

often views people with intellectual disabilities as less than (emotionally, socially, cognitively,

etc.) which can lead to further discrimination and neglect to educate. This can prevent people

from recognizing the possibilities of gender and sexuality expression, as well as lack of informed

consent surrounding sexual practices. Schubert (2021) discusses the incongruences, saying

“Some may not even be aware of the possibility of coming out, because people with IDs often

receive less sexual and gender education than their counterparts without IDs and have less access

to safe spaces in which to express and experiment with gender identity” (p. 4). Recognizing the

impact of the inequality in education can highlight aspects of sex education for trans folks of

different abilities that may not have been perceived before. Ableism is a prevalent factor in this,

as “ableism can portray disabled people as asexual, hypersexual, or infantilized. Any expression

of gender identity or sexuality may be ignored or actively repressed” (Neumann-Mascis, 2021, p.

6). Denying trans-disabled individuals the opportunity to gain education in these topics is a for of

neglect and a gateway for abuse. Knotty Productions is run by disabled people, for disabled

people, to increase awareness to accommodations that increase accessibility to sexuality and kink

practices that may have not seemed possible before.

Support for individuals with intersections of trans and disabled identities have only

recently been studied, however according to Neumann-Mascis (2021), “the intersection of these

identities illuminates individual, interpersonal, and systemic manifestations of op-

pression and resiliency” (p. 3). The overarching impact of the exclusion of trans and disabled

people from broader society bleeds into the impact of their broader social determinants of health.

There is overwhelming evidence showing that “trans-disabled people are two to four times as

likely to experience violence, sexual violence, abuse, and neglect” (Neumann-Mascis, 2021, p.

5). Prioritizing sex education rooted in recognizing abuse, utilizing prevention tactics, and

highlighting the importance of understanding informed consent, boundaries and negotiations

within your dynamics are all crucial aspects of inclusive sex education and Knotty Productions

as a whole.

Neurodivergence has been found in a multitude of studies to be more prevalent in the

trans population than to the cisgender population, with Gratton (2021) citing estimates of 5% to

15% of trans people to also be autistic (p. 3). With such a high prevalence of neurodivergence in

the trans population, prioritizing neurodivergent-friendly educational methods is incredibly

important for gaining the most reach for educating. Knotty Productions utilizes all possibilities

when planning for classes and events by providing sensory-friendly environments, accessible

formats of material such as printed and electronic copies with legible fonts, or other

accommodation available to be requested prior. With more combined experiences of systemically

oppressed identities, as well as the psychological stress endured by living within systems that are

actively attacking rights, improving methods of education and advocacy is crucial in mitigating

the multiple minority stressors.

Mitigating multiple minority stressors can come in many forms, however community is

the main basis of support for many trans people. The Gonzales & Pulice-Farrow (2021) piece

highlight the intersection of queer with trans, and talk about often the intersection of these

communities show they [LGBTQIA+ and trans individuals] are “specifically looking for spaces

to feel welcome and may attempt to access spaces that should feel validating but where, in

reality, they are disenfranchised and discriminated against due to their other minority identities”

(p. 5). The experiences within sex education in these intersections is highly relevant, as there is a

lack of trans and queer friendly sex education resources and safe community spaces to engage

and meet like minded people.

Finding safe community space can also be incredibly difficult when there are significant

economic factors that impact your ability to go to a public place without spending money. Along

with other studies, Goldberg & Casey (2021) state “Research consistently finds that trans people

are more likely to report living in poverty” (p. 6). Economic challenges resulting in lack of

employment, healthcare and housing are all influential factors for trans folks to get the care they

need. Engaging in community often involves going to bars, restaurants, pubs, and other activities

that require a monetary contribution. Finding ways to engage in community without cost can be

incredibly difficult, especially in the realm of sex education,

Often, comprehensive sex education is a healthcare resource that is often overlooked for

both cisgender and transgender individuals, and typically when offered, it is behind some form of

paywall. This can increase the difficulty for trans people to access this information due to the

lack of financing available to attending seminars, heteronormative sex shops with uneducated

employees, or even sex therapists who charge high rates yet have a lack of cultural competencies

for a multitude of identities, trans included. However, with the increasingly high rate of sexual

based violence faced by trans people, recognizing the impact of their intersecting identities is

crucial in advocating for providing to the populations in need. Mx. Knotty offers their services at

a sliding scale as well as multiple free community events each month. This helps reduce the

number of barriers for people interested in learning more about trans-inclusive sex education and

kink.

Beyond advocating and advertising for Mx. Knotty’s educational lecture series, our group

created a tangible and electronic resource for individuals to access safe, informative and trans-

inclusive sex education materials in the form of zines. Inspired by the influence of the queer

trans zine publishers of the 90s like Riot Grrl, we collected and curated a zine collection to

continue to amplify marginalized voices and distributed them among different areas of campus as

well as made a website to host digital copies of the zines. These zines represented the multiple

marginalized communities often faced with discrimination in sex education; particularly focusing

on people with intellectual and physical disabilities, people with neurodivergence, people in

poverty, and other queer people who feel they are ostracized from community due to their

multiple marginalized identities and lack of safe community spaces. The implementation of this

project involved collaboration on the printing, folding, cutting and placing the zines around the

SOU campus, requiring group members to pursue permission from their various housing

coordinators and building representatives. Beyond this, our project focused on advertising for the

hub event of the Kink 101 event led by Mx. Knotty at the SJEC to distribute zines and promote

their voice in the community.

Our project led to a massive turnout at the Let’s Talk About Sex: Kink 101 event, which

also hosted one of our zine libraries and was nearly empty by the end of the event. There was an

incredible amount of engagement and interest among the students that attended the event, as well

as further pursual of additional zines and resources we may have had. Promoting this production

company, and more specifically the voice of Mx. Knotty to the queer and trans community, is

enlightening and exemplary of the strength in community, education, activism and makes the

world a more equitable place for trans and gender-nonconforming people and I am grateful to

have been a part of this project, and many more to come.

As a member of Knotty Productions, as well as a disabled sex worker and educator, my

own identities played a crucial part in this project and the implementation of events and

planning. Finding my way while mitigating multiple minority stressors led me to a beautiful

community of loved ones, all who wish to pursue advocacy in sex education for all. Finding my

community and spreading the joy to invite others is activism in action as well as a representation

of strength in togetherness, and as so beautifully put by D. James Terry,

“My joy is an icon of trans families

and a testament to trans communities.

It is celebration of the truth that resistance is resilience,

that transformation is both magical and attainable,

that no one can stand in the way of our rising and

reaching for the sun because

our trans joy resists.”