[Image: Public domain photos of UFC Freedom 250, June 2026, and Michelle Obama, December 2014.]
Today in Assigned Media, I offer a Black trans perspective on the misgendering of Michelle Obama at Sunday’s UFC fight at the White House.
Tag Archives: cissexism
Raquel Willis: Black Trans Activist In Bloom
[Image: Raquel Willis speaking on stage at the 2017 San Francisco Trans March and Transgender Day of Remembrance. Photos by Pax Ahimsa Gethen, CC BY-SA 4.0.]
Today in Assigned Media, I share my perspective on the life and career of Black trans activist Raquel Willis, whose memoir The Risk It Takes to Bloom came out in paperback last week.
On Trading Truth for Transphobia
[Image: Side by side headshots of Pax on their 1990 Northwestern student ID and their 2024 US passport.]
Today in Assigned Media, I share my perspective on Northwestern University’s recent capitulation to the Trump administration, as a Black trans alum of that school.
https://www.assignedmedia.org/breaking-news/trading-truth-transphobia-northwestern-university
Trump’s Contorted ‘Gender Ideology’: A Policy Against Pronouns
[Image: Photo of a person’s hand holding a small whiteboard reading “Hello my pronouns are —/—” in colorful letters.]
Last week, White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt stopped answering queries from reporters who include pronouns in their email signatures, stating, “Any reporter who chooses to put their preferred pronouns in their bio clearly does not care about biological reality or truth and therefore cannot be trusted to write an honest story”. My response in this editorial for Assigned Media: https://www.assignedmedia.org/breaking-news/trump-gender-ideology-policy-against-pronouns
Facing Fears of Detransition on the Trans Day of Visibility
[Image: Selfie of Pax at the end of the 2019 San Francisco Trans March.]
In today’s post on Medium, on the eve of the annual Trans Day of Visibility, I consider that I might be forcibly detransitioned due to the anti-trans actions of the Trump administration.
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Governor Newsom: Support Trans People
[Image: Gavin Newsom, then lieutenant governor of California, speaks at a press conference in San Francisco City Hall on June 26, 2013, the day same-sex marriage became legal in California. Photo by Pax Ahimsa Gethen.]
In today’s post on Medium, I call out California Governor Gavin Newsom for agreeing with the anti-trans views of far-right influencer Charlie Kirk, a guest on his new podcast.
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Breaking Binary Boundaries
Image: Netflix banner for Hannah Gadsby’s Gender Agenda, featuring Polaroid-style headshots of Hannah and the seven other featured comedians: Jes Tom, Asha Ward, Chloe Petts, Krishna Ishtha, Alok, DeAnne Smith, and Dahlia Belle.
In today’s story on Medium, I write about the Trans Day of Visibility and the genderqueer comedy special, Hannah Gadsby’s Gender Agenda.
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The Truth About Trans Women
Image: Lexi Adsit, Mia “Tu Mutch” Satya, Shawn Demmons, and Melanie Ampon (“Nya”) emcee the 2016 Trans Day of Visibility celebration in San Francisco.
In today’s post on Medium, “The Truth About Trans Women”, I counter several common transphobic talking points.
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Cisgender Definitions
Image: Pax gives a presentation on gender identity at a Wikipedia salon alongside host Pete Forsyth, April 2016.
Today’s post on Medium is in response to Twitter CEO Elon Musk declaring cisgender and cis to be “slurs” on that platform.
Here’s a friends link to bypass the paywall:
https://funcrunch.medium.com/cisgender-definitions-2eeabe065fc8?sk=bf204855013c4244c9ad70f3197a3e1c
A Trans Girl Playing Sports Is Not An “Emergency”
Image description: Composite image of a female “Venus” symbol, soccer ball, and a map of West Virginia.
Today’s post on Medium is my response to the continued attempts to keep trans girls and women from playing women’s sports.
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