This is one of my favorite of your pieces. You put your personal experience into greater context of the world (Free Palestine) while still speaking with a strong anecdotal voice. Travelling while trans is something I hadn’t thought deeply about previously (how white cis-woman of me) but now I’ll never ignore it. You’re safe in your community, my friend ❤️
I relate to so much of this so deeply. You found a great way to talk about the very real fears that go along with existing as trans in the current world, as well as the nuance of the fact that most people in the world don’t actually give us reason to feel that fear. It’s so weird and so complicated and you write about it well.
thank you, I'm so glad you connected with it and feel that way 😭 it was hard for me to decide when it was ready to go out because I was afraid I wasn't writing what I was trying to say. but this is definitely what I'm trying to say :) thanks for reading!!
Oh my goodness, Aris. You are a beautiful storyteller, thank you for your vulnerability and your story. I am so sorry that you experienced this at the hands of someone who was supposed to instill calm. The points about how comfortable some people are imaging harm really is so painfully true. Lots to sit with in that point. I also felt the line “I am my own litmus test”, what an empowering reminder.
So glad you had a good time in Senegal, it is a country high on my list!
I really appreciate you reading and leaving this thoughtful comment ❤️ I'm glad there are things that resonate with you! I got to see Dakar, Toubab Dialaw, Lampoul, and Saint-Louis while I was there :) Saint-Louis definitely had a calm spirit and the boats are so beautiful. I'm excited for you to experience it!
This is one of my favorite of your pieces. You put your personal experience into greater context of the world (Free Palestine) while still speaking with a strong anecdotal voice. Travelling while trans is something I hadn’t thought deeply about previously (how white cis-woman of me) but now I’ll never ignore it. You’re safe in your community, my friend ❤️
wow thank you so much :') I sat on this one for weeks because I was really unsure about how it would be received so this means a lot!
I relate to so much of this so deeply. You found a great way to talk about the very real fears that go along with existing as trans in the current world, as well as the nuance of the fact that most people in the world don’t actually give us reason to feel that fear. It’s so weird and so complicated and you write about it well.
thank you, I'm so glad you connected with it and feel that way 😭 it was hard for me to decide when it was ready to go out because I was afraid I wasn't writing what I was trying to say. but this is definitely what I'm trying to say :) thanks for reading!!
Oh my goodness, Aris. You are a beautiful storyteller, thank you for your vulnerability and your story. I am so sorry that you experienced this at the hands of someone who was supposed to instill calm. The points about how comfortable some people are imaging harm really is so painfully true. Lots to sit with in that point. I also felt the line “I am my own litmus test”, what an empowering reminder.
So glad you had a good time in Senegal, it is a country high on my list!
I really appreciate you reading and leaving this thoughtful comment ❤️ I'm glad there are things that resonate with you! I got to see Dakar, Toubab Dialaw, Lampoul, and Saint-Louis while I was there :) Saint-Louis definitely had a calm spirit and the boats are so beautiful. I'm excited for you to experience it!