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Academic, Writer, Speaker, Activist
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TransAmazon: A Gender Queer Journey (2003)
Featuring Joelle Ruby Ryan
Produced by Joelle Ruby Ryan and Peter Welch
TransAmazon is a 40-minute documentary film about gender identity and the push for social change as seen through the eyes of one self-styled transgender warrior. This film explores evolving definitions of trans, genderqueer youth, the bathroom bugaboo, radical challenges to the gender binary, passing, violence and hate crimes, bigotry and the possibility of uniting for cultural transformation. This is a gritty, grass-roots film which uses one individual’s very personal struggle to raise fundamental questions about the construction of contemporary society. As Joelle struggles to carve out a place for hirself in the world, she urges viewers to see the common struggle of humanity and the interconnectedness of all life on the planet. Viewers watching the film will have not only their view of gender challenged, but their take on what it means to be one person fighting for change and freedom.
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TransAmazon: A Gender Queer Journey List of Screenings:
•Bowling Green State University, Bowling Green, Ohio : October 2003. Premiere.
•University of New Hampshire, Durham, NH: November 2003
•Midwest Bisexual, Lesbian, Gay, Transgender and Ally College Conference, Ames, Iowa: February 2004
•Co-Screened with Judith Halberstam’s film-in-progress All Hail the Kings, Bowling Green, Ohio: March 2004
•WhamBamTrans Arts Fest, Pawtucket, Rhode Island: April 2004
•Gender and Sexuality Conference at Lawrence University, Appleton, Wisconsin: April 2004
•New Hampshire Transgender Resources for Education and Empowerment Annual Spring Summit, Durham, NH: April 2004
•Oberlin College, Oberlin, Ohio: May 2004
•LadyFest Ohio, Columbus, Ohio: May 2004
•National Women’s Studies Association Conference, Milwaukee, Wisconsin: June 2004
•Camp Trans, Walhalla, Michigan: August 2004
•North Carolina Gay and Lesbian Film Fest, Durham, North Carolina: August 2004
•Chicago’s First Trans/Genderqueer Film/Video Festival, Chicago, Illinois: August 2004
•Trans Youth Resource and Advocacy, Chicago, IL : October 2004
•New England College Health Association Conference, Portsmouth, New Hampshire: November 2004
•University of Toledo Spectrum, Toledo, Ohio: November 2004
•Antioch College, Yellow Springs, Ohio: November 2004
•OUT TAKES Dallas Annual Lesbian and Gay Film Festival, Dallas, Texas, November 2004
•Tiffany Club First Event Conference, Woburn, Massachusetts: January 2005
•Queer Screen Presents 2005 Mardi Gras Film Festival, Sydney, Australia: February 2005.
•Translating Identity, Burlington Vermont: March 2005
•University of Missouri Kansas City, Women’s Center: March 2005.
•19th London Lesbian and Gay Film Festival, London, England: April 2005.
•Owens Community College Gay Straight Alliance, Toledo, Ohio: February 2006.
•Translations: Seattle’s First Transgender Film Festival. Seattle, Washington. September 2006.
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TransAmazon: A Gender Queer Journey
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TransAmazon: A Gender Queer Journey
Featuring Joelle Ruby Ryan
Discussion Questions
1.Define and differentiate the following terms:
- sex and gender
- gender identity and gender expression
- gender identity and sexual orientation
2.How does the video define “transgender”? Do you agree with this definition? Why or why not? How commonly is the term “transgender” used in your day-to-day experience? What synonyms do you hear used in its place? How can we construct a definition that is both broad and easily understood by the dominant society?
3.There is a growing split between the “transgender” and “transsexual” community. What are the differences between these two identity groups? Why do you think there is tension between these populations and what can be done to strengthen unity between these two groups?
4.The issue of “passing” has caused a rift within the trans community. How do you characterize this divide and are there ways to bridge differences between gender outlaws who are “out” in all areas of their life and those transpeople who have gone “stealth” ? What are some of the political implications of “passing” and how does “passing” lend itself to the maintenance of a gender binary? What is “passing privilege” and what is its relationship to power and to life chances/ economic opportunities? Why is it vitally important to discuss “passing” both within and outside the trans community?
5.The “bathroom bugaboo” is a longstanding problem for trans, gender-variant and gender-queer populations. What kind of activism have you seen on this issue and how successful have these social-change efforts been? What can non-trans allies do to ameliorate the situation for gender-benders and their quest to pee in peace? Is the analogy between formally racially-segregated bathrooms and gender-segregated bathrooms a sound one or one which problematically parallels race to gender? What appeals can be made to desegregate gendered restrooms and what are possible resistances to these appeals? For instance, would gender-mixed public restrooms cause an increase in sexual assault? How can we counter that argument for those who believe it?
6.How do you define “gender queer” ? What is the relationship between the gender queer community and the trans community? How has the Gay, Lesbian, Bisexual, Transgender (GLBT) movement as a whole been affected by notions of gender queer?
7.What are some of the specific, material needs of transgender youth? How can the GLBT youth-support movement (non-profits, Gay-Straight Alliances, etc.) be more trans inclusive and more accountable to the needs of trans youth? What changes do you see regarding consciousness of trans and gender-variant issues amongst younger queers versus their older counterparts?
8.Why is the reality of transgender hate crimes so ignored and rendered invisible in this country? What is the role of race and class in hate crimes against transpeople? How do police departments mishandle these cases and how do lawyers and juries nullify these egregious acts? What steps can you, your organization or your community take to call attention to hate crimes against transpeople?
9.How does the representation in TransAmazon differ from mainstream depictions of transgenderism in media culture? Why is it crucial that transpeople play a role in creating and producing images that represent the reality and complexity of their own lived experiences?
10.What salient issues do you think are missing from TransAmazon? What specific issues would you like to see addressed about gender-diverse identities and constituencies in “alternative” video productions?
11.There is a history of transphobia in the gay and lesbian community, although this has improved in recent years due to comprehensive educational efforts. Do you think transphobia is still present in the gay community? If so, how and why is it a persistent problem? How does it differ in the gay male community versus the lesbian community? How can GLB people be allies to their trans, gender queer and gender variant comrades in the fight against gender and sexual oppression.
12.Joelle is from a small town in New Hampshire. What are the specific issues facing trans and queer people from rural environments? What can be done to alleviate the isolation of folks from these non-urban environments?
13.Joelle’s story tells the trans story from a male-to-female (MTF) perspective. Often times, people erroneously think that the female-to-male(FTM) experience is identical in reverse. How does the experiences of people along the FTM spectrum differ from transwomen? Why are transmen often more invisible than their trans-feminine counterparts? Despite the differences between MTFs and FTMs, do you think there is enough shared experience to fight for a common struggle?
14.Why is this video entitled TransAmazon? What role does Joelle’s physical size and her height in particular play in her life story? What can we as a culture do to support people of size, including trans people of size?
15.Trans people of color face racism in addition to transphobia in American society. How do the experiences of trans people of color differ from their white counterparts? What can white trans and non-trans people do to be better allies to transgender people of color communities? How does transgender intersect with and differ from race as a social construct?
16.Finally, what is the overarching theme that you discern from TransAmazon regarding gender fluidity and the continuum of gender expression and identities? How many genders exist in your world view? And how do we work together to create a world which honors and celebrates the radical breadth of sexes, genders and desires? Or is the ultimate goal to fully eradicate gender as we know it out of existence? If you could design a utopian society, what would gender and sexuality look like in your constructed universe? What, if any, steps can we take in the “real world” to make such a world possible?
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The price for TransAmazon is a reasonable $50.00. It’s easy to order:
1. Send a check for $50.00 payable to UNH Health Services. (The video was completed at the University of New Hampshire with the assistance of the Office of Health Education and Promotion.) Be sure to include the following information: who (what department, organization or individual) is ordering the video, a contact for that department or organization, whether you want VHS or DVD, including name and email, and the address to send the video to. Please send check and information to:
UNH Health Services
C/O Peter Welch
12 Ballard Street
Durham, NH 03824
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