Oliver Leon
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LIT REVIEW: “Freak of Nurture” by Kelli Dunham
As a youngling queer, sometimes I think I have an internal gaydar for role models, since homo adults who are also viable options for role models are just so fucking hard to find.
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A Columnist’s Farewell
I need to go pursue joy instead of pursuing gender.
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With New Scars Like Smiles
As those of you following my column may know, I am a transsexy-ual. I mean, transsexual. Growing up, everyone around me thought I was a girl. But no one thought to ask! So a month ago, I had a double mastectomy, known colloquially to trans people as ‘top surgery.’
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Standards of Beauty
Do you ever wonder what Medusa saw when she looked into the mirror for the first time? Did she admire her snake hair? Did she think that her eyes, which can turn onlookers into stone, were pretty? Did her snakes ever drip poison onto her shoulders, or was Medusa invulnerable to her own powers?
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An Interview With Gabrielle Bouchard of the 2110 Centre
“Is it okay to talk about my experience? What do you want to know?”
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Thoughts About Imogen Binnie’s Nevada
Imogen Binnie’s first novel is the snarkiest story I’ve ever read about being a transsexual. Considering that a lot of trans people often develop snark and sarcasm as defense mechanisms against ignorance, that’s saying something.
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To My Seventeen-Year-Old Self
Hello! This is your older self writing to you. I just thought that I would take the time to send love your way because I know that you are very frustrated and sad.
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Pronouns, Androgyny and Pirates
Recently, while meandering home after a long day full of engaging conversations and good proper hugging, I fell into a pensive mood. I realized that my gender is a semi-colon; ambiguous and poetic. (Also occasionally pretentious and always useful.)
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Ryan Kai Cheng Thom on Writing and Dreams Coming True
Ryan Thom, local spoken word poet, has many names.
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Chats With Author Susan Jane Bigelow
Susan Jane Bigelow is a science fiction author, political writer, librarian and cat lady.
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Topside Press Anthology Is No Trans 101
In early October, I tweeted about my frustration around not having trans* writers in a contemporary English class syllabus, and had the good fortune to be heard by Topside Press, a publishing house started in 2011 with the intention of publishing “authentic trans narratives.”
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Trans Day of Remembrance
Who gets remembered? Who gets days off to witness, mourn and acknowledge the pain of death? And who isn’t remembered? Who’s left to rot in silence?
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On Etiquette
I want to dissect a remark that I often get from people: “I didn’t realize that you were trans” or “I couldn’t tell!”
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The Anniversary
As of two weeks ago, I have officially been on testosterone for one year.
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Meditations on the T-Word
Last week, The Link published an article on the annual Rocky Horror Picture Show Halloween Ball (“Welcome to Transsexual Transylvania” [Vol. 33, Iss. 11]). The article used the word ‘tr*nny’ to describe the back-up dancers in the performance that accompanied the film. This is a slur that has historically been used against transsexual women.
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The Radical and the Ritual
I first bumped into Shannon Kearns on Twitter. His handle, @anarchistrev, caught my eye. There were Christian anarchists in the world?! And they were trans, too?
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TRANSforming Feminism Conference: Trans Access (The Redux)
To give you an idea as to how intense the TRANSforming Feminism conference in Peterborough, ON was, I’ll share an anecdote with you.
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Opinions
That Transsexual Guy
To give you an idea as to how intense the TRANSforming Feminism conference in Peterborough, ON was, I’ll share an anecdote with you.
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Opinions
That Transsexual Guy
Trans people are often seen as liars and tricksters. An example of this would be the idea that comes up every time a bill (C-389, C-279) proposes to recognize gender identity and gender expression as a recognized group under Canada’s Criminal Code, thereby protecting…
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Forced to Lie by Legislation
Trans people are often seen as liars and tricksters. An example of this would be the idea that comes up every time a bill (C-389, C-279) proposes to recognize gender identity and gender expression as a recognized group under Canada’s Criminal Code, thereby protecting…