Community Voices

At Gender Health Center, our mission comes alive in the ways we show up for one another, especially in the places where stigma, criminalization, and systems of care have too often failed our communities. In our work, we are asked to move beyond binaries: safe or unsafe, using or sober, healthy or unhealthy, deserving or undeserving. Instead, we begin with people as they are, recognizing their wisdom, autonomy, and right to make decisions about their own bodies and lives.

This year, the Gender Health Center’s Trans Artist Program (TAP) brought together 6 transgender and gender-diverse young adult artists for 6 months of mentorship, artistic development, community building, and creative exploration. Their work culminated in our annual Trans Art Showcase, with this year’s chosen theme being Trans Luminaries, where more than 60 community members gathered to witness art spanning dance performance, photography, fiber arts, zine-making, and painting

Too often, conversations about transgender health focus primarily on health inequities—higher rates of depression, anxiety, discrimination, and barriers to care. While these inequities are very real and require our attention, they tell only part of the story. An equally important question is: What supports safety, refuge, healing, and thriving?

What Does Freedom Mean to You? It’s Freedom Month here at The Gender Health Center. And we’re starting this month off with a question:...