Defining What it Means to be Trans: From Fear to Myself

By Shelby Faulkner
Art by Maddy Best

The definition of the word transgender has changed many times throughout my life. The Merriam-Webster Dictionary defines “transgender” as a person whose gender identity is opposite to the sex identified at birth. But that’s not what it means to be trans—not really. Sometimes it means fear, self-hatred, and so many other unpleasant feelings. Sometimes it means learning that on the other side of anxiety and fear, you often find love and joy.

Although I didn’t have words for it at the time, I first started to realize I was trans around the 6th grade. Growing up in a small town I didn’t have a lot of exposure to queer people. In my town the word “gay” was used as an insult rather than an adjective—and in elementary school, kids used to ask if anyone wanted to play “smear the queer” as a recess game. Occasionally, the word “he-she” would get thrown around too. On Sundays, we would go to church, and sometimes they would preach about how homosexuals would burn in eternal hellfire because they were living in sin. Being trans means learning to hide.

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Writing Our Legacies: Memory Work & Reclaiming Black Queer Narratives

By Max Sheffield
Photos by Whitney Young

Family is a tricky subject for queer people. Understanding our lineage? Even more so. 

Speaking with queer elders about what they have faced and what we can learn has been a moving part of my own journey toward acceptance and understanding of my identity.

But as a white queer person, you cannot start to have these questions without acknowledging the visibility and privileges that white queer people have over queer Black and Brown folks. They have led the way for queer liberation, but their stories can be hard to find. The local media archive, B/qKC (Black/queer Kansas City), provides a space for those stories to get the representation they deserve.

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Valeria Eden’s Tender Teeth Explores Grief, Identity, and Healing

By Sophia-Joelle McDowell
Art by Kelcie McKenney

Valeria Eden is passionate, and it shines through her words and actions. She follows a vegan lifestyle, adores her pups, and loves to read whenever she gets the chance. And she funnels all that passion into her writing—both fiction and poetry. With a BA in psychology, Valeria is also pursuing an MFA in poetry and creative writing in colorful Colorado.

Tender Teeth is Valeria’s newest poetry book, and it’s packed with gripping poems inspired by the aches and pains found in death, grief, identity, love and survival. We spoke with Valeria about the journey life has taken her on thus far and got the scoop on her must-read poetry book.

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Learning to Heal from Heartbreak in Blindsided, a Time Travel Novel About Lessons from Your Past Self

By Stephanie Carey
Photos by Travis Young

What if you could sit down with your younger self? What would you say? What warnings would you give? After an agonizing break-up, I found myself wishing I could do just that—give myself all the wisdom I learned the hard way. Since time travel gummies don’t exist, I did the next best thing: I wrote a novel about it. 

Writing this story was a personal journey of distraction and healing after a rough breakup. Yes, I, a 46-year-old woman who has been married and divorced twice, found myself boo-hooing over a man I wasn’t even married to. I did not have “monumental heartbreak” on my 2024 BINGO card, but that’s where I found myself in March of last year. I honestly dismissed the validity of “just dating” breakups, thinking I had my battle scars from two divorces. Nothing could touch me. 

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What was second-wave feminism really like? Explore the era with feminist author Clara Bringham during her live talk on March 20

By Emily Laptad

The 1960s and 70s marked a significant era of progress for women in the United States. The Equal Pay Act of 1963 was the first nationwide legislation for eliminating wage disparities based on sex. The Civil Rights Act of 1964 prohibited employment discrimination based on race, color, religion, sex, or national origin. The Women’s Educational Equity Act of 1972 guaranteed equal access to education for women and girls. Roe v. Wade legalized abortion across the US in 1973. The Equal Opportunity Credit Act of 1974 enabled women to open bank accounts and apply for credit cards with their own names. And other court cases and legislation further expanded women’s rights to employment, education, financial independence, and reproductive health during this time too. 

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