Alison recommends…

Just another beautiful submission.

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Chris Lyng recommends…

This song is about accepting people for what they see themselves as.

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XylophoneGender recommends…

Several binder exchange programs limit recipients to binary-identified guys only. In a Bind doesn’t. On their eligibility page, they state that their program is “for trans-masculine and genderqueer youth suffering from gender dysphoria resulting in discomfort about their chest.”

The program is focused on the USA, but they encourage youth from elsewhere to contact them for recommendations in other countries.

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Someone recommends…

Though primarily a fantasy story based in ancient China, the main character is a boy called Eon — who is actually a biological female. While at first sie is “pretending” so that sie can train with the other boys, the book has some very thoughtful moments where Eon starts to wonder whether it really is acting, or whether sie actually feels male at heart. Even the synopsis of the book online calls hir “he”, even though it is never actually clarified in the first book whether sie feels male or female or other.

There are other characters that tackle gender issues such a trans woman, who is treated respectfully as truly female. The book, overall, handles gender issues very well even though they aren’t the focal point of the novel and I’d really recommend reading it for any genderqueer lover of fantasy novels.

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Cuna recommends…

I dream of a world where every single one of these listed items is respected.

Some of my favourites are:

“6. No one’s gender should ever be assumed. No one should ever be assumed to have a gender.
7. You have a right to full control over your gender beginning at birth. No surgical alterations should be made on unconsenting infants in order to fit them into a certain paradigm of gender. Gendered names, pronouns, and descriptors should never be used until children can decide for themselves how they wish to be known to the world.
[…]
16. You have a right to total control over your own body and sole authority in making decisions about it.”

Imagine that. Which one(s) are your favourites? What would you add?

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Someone recommends…

A great book with a unique twist on the Werewolf genre! This book is full of LGBT*Q characters, focusing on Devon Andrews, and her death and re-birth into this underworld which she never expected (or even knew existed). There’s some great gender play in here, and I don’t want to give away too many spoilers, but if you’re a fan of horror or werewolves, this has a great cast of characters for readers to identify with.

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Tree recommends…

The description for the video reads:

“In which Hank takes on a topic he’s been afraid to cover for a while now. How should we talk about sexuality, what is the difference between sex and gender…and between sexual orientation and sexual behavior.”

He uses a great line in there–

“Because as much as we love to label things, it’s impossible to label every point on an infinite continuum” in regards to gender identity.

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Essej recommends…

Submit your gender identity & a photo of you embodying that identity in 5 words or less! Gender Fancy (like Cat Fancy) is a fun & creative way to challenge the heteronormative assumption that there are only 2 genders in the world. Contribute!

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Someone recommends…

Just a few days ago I’d discovered a band from the 90’s called Magnetic Fields and have been listening to them a bunch.

I was surprised to see a song of theirs posted on my youtube feed from Domino records. The whole song can be summed up by a single line: “The only girl I’ll ever love is Andrew in drag.”

NB: The video features brief nudity. There is also a music-only version.

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Howard recommends…

Indochine have quite a few songs about being gender-variant, including Playboy, 3ème sexe (literally translates to “third sex”), and Ladyboy. Revolution is kind of about gender. Juliette’s Silences and Unisexe are somewhat about gender, but focus more on relationships.

Indochine is an incredibly gender progressive band. Unfortunately, they do only sing in French. Still, their songs have a pretty clear meaning!

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Anonymous recommends…

I think the author described it much better than I could have: “Gladys Bentley was a blues singer, piano player, and drag king who performed bawdy tunes in Harlem nightclubs throughout the 1920s and ’30s. Despite the social obstacles she faced as a black, openly queer woman, her outrageous and energetic act became a mainstay of the Harlem cabaret. In 1952, under the oppressive social conditions of the McCarthy era, Bentley publicly renounced her previous identity and claimed to have found happiness as a feminine housewife.”

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Someone recommends…

As the title says, this is a photo shoot of men wearing an outfit from their girlfriends. From the photographer’s description: “He wanted to make images that showed not only the equality of balance in heterosexual relationships, but also the feeling of confusion the male may be experiencing with this change.”

I think Genderfork readers will appreciate this because of the portrayal of cis-gendered men in a feminine aspect and the reactions that may evoke. For example, one of the commentators on the original website said that the portraits made him feel uncomfortable yet curious how his girlfriend may have influenced his own gender expression over time.

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DonC recommends…

‘Annabel’, by Kathleen Winter, is the story of a child born in 1968 on the edge of the Canadian wilderness. The child is born a hermaphrodite. Shortly after birth, the decision is made to raise the child as a boy, christened Wayne. The child’s true biological status is kept a secret by the parents and the local medical community. Maintaining this secret causes many problems for the child and parents.

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Tree recommends…

This 1919 German film was made by Richard Oswald and German sexologist Dr Magnus Hirschfeld.

It is known as the first feature film to sympathetically depict homosexuality and queer culture: For example, it contains a scene at a gay-bar, with men and women freely cross-dressing and dancing with whomever they pleased. In another scene, Körner, a violinist, feels plagued by his “illness” and Dr Hirschfeld reassures him that his nature is just fine, and it is society that causes his strife.

It was far ahead of its time— but in a way, it wasn’t, because if it weren’t for Nazi Germany, and the Hays Code (a censorship code that spanned four decades of Western cinema) we might have made leaps and bounds in the social acceptance of queer people back in the 20s, instead of in the 60s and 70s.

Beautiful stuff.

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Logan K. Young recommends…

I remember this tweet just like it was yesterday:

@katebornstein: “New song by me on YouTube: ‘Tranny of Assisi.’ Art by @relaxmammal, music by @Songify. http://t.co/GC8LskV #cute #pug #puggle #cats #dogs.”

With more than a few characters left in her seven score limit (not to mention the draconian firewalls at my nine-to-fiver), I almost didn’t click on that link. Known more for her staging than her singing, I thought it a bit unceremonious, too, for our most decorated “transgender warrior” to drop such a thing out of nowhere. Barely a minute long, perhaps Col. B. didn’t think it warranted any real shock ’n’ awe.

But boy-oh-lady-boy, did she ever undersell it.

Unlike many in the elder guard, Auntie Kate has always had her finger quite abreast on whatever it is the kids are up to nowadays. Produced entirely on a dollar store App(le) for geniuses on the go, this li’l ditty is a delightfully vocoded roll call of her many four-legged friends: a pug, a puggle, twothree kitties, and one shy, but friendly turtle.

Turns out, St. Francis of Assisi — founder of the Franciscan order, known mostly for receiving the stigmata himself — is also the patron saint of animals and the environment. (Raised Catholic, but molested Baptist, how was I to know?) Even more fascinating, Bornstein orchestrated this whole paean while on a plane to Ireland.

So, while the momma cat’s away from Twitter, mouse on over yourself…and just push play.

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Keir recommends…

Beautiful short film about gender non-conformity set to the wonderful music of Goldfrapp.

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Someone recommends…

TransPanTastic is a podcast about gender, identity, orientation, and all the life that happens around them. George is a straight FtM transgender man, and Jess is his pansexual nonbinary wife. They have kids, and jobs, and a life together, and every other Saturday they release a short (10-20 mins) conversation about what’s happening in their world, with topics ranging from transition to kids to work to, well, everything else in their world. The first few episodes are up, and I have it on good authority that at least another months’ worth has been recorded and queued for release.

Check it out on PodBean, PodFeed or iTunes.

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Andy Coate recommends…

I run a blog where I talk about Unitarian Universalism and trans stuff… and the intersection of the two, of course. On my blog stats page I can see what search terms people have used to come across my blog, and over and over I was seeing a repeating theme that, essentially, boils down to “Can I be religious if I’m trans?” One person flat out searched “Are transgender people allowed to pray?”

So I started a blog project, asking the ministers and lay leaders I knew to submit prayers, meditations, affirmations, or just general kind thoughts for the transgender community.

The response has been beautiful and heartwarming. Check out the prayers and, if you like, post your own.

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Someone recommends…

Robin Renée is a performing songwriter and kirtan chant artist. She is also a longtime bi activist, a polyamorous person, and an explorer of her gender-malleable identity. She often writes from the perspective of spirit.rocks.sexy — how spirituality, music, and sexuality merge for her and what she learns and experiences through that lens.

Check out “The Fine Art of Being Unprepared” and “New Year/New Order” and you will get a feel for the interwoven journey.

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Medusa Hirself recommends…

What is gender? How do we relate to it? How do we talk about it? Does it mean the same thing for everyone? FINE examines these questions by interviewing Midwesterners from across the gender spectrum. Check out the online preview of this fascinating comic project. They are actively looking for more interviewees, particularly queer and trans* people of color from the Midwest USA.

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