Transgender Advocacy Quotes

I was in a conversation and someone said: "You know, we were talking about the whole issue of transgender and how it has become so accepted now, and somebody said, 'You know the Oprah show, I think has had a big impact.'" I said, I don't think so. We did several transgender [shows], but we didn't do as much for transgender as I did for, say, abused kids or battered women. And they said, "But no, you started the conversation. You started the conversation and the conversation has led us to here."

There are a whole bunch of people - Republicans or sports fans or reality TV fans - who probably would never have recognized that they have trans people in their world. Caitlyn Jenner really is thinking about the movement and saving lives, so I know that her intentions are honorable.

Any way that I can use my career or my platform to push along transgender visibility in the mainstream and society serves me on a personal level in that it will make day-to-day existence when I'm not doing this that much easier.

I'm not trying to be a spokeswoman for the transgender community; I just want to be looked at as a living, breathing, happy human being.

The preoccupation with transition and with surgery objectifies trans people, and we don't get to really deal with the real lived experiences.

I think Grace [Dunham] and I are always working from a personal place, and the fact that these were issues that we'd been talking about in our own families really clicked, but also Jason's [Benjamin] passion about it and his clear sense that this was going to be something emotional and remarkable to watch. It was very hard not get excited about it and want to help in any way we could.

North Carolina was on the vanguard of being for [ trans rights ], and that's why we're seeing this push back. The conservatives noticed that there had been a lot of progress and they tried to tamp it down.

I think that the fact that we had a trans woman on the cover of 'Vanity Fair'... is only good for the trans community. I can't imagine that the more we talk about this that it's not just doing everybody a lot of good.

We have some amazing people that are standing up for transgender people, and it's very cool to see that.

It was through my hashtag #girlslikeus where I connected with other trans women on Twitter and Tumblr. We had challenging conversations, courageous personal revelations, and shared insights and experiences, and just had fun. The hashtag tethered me to many women in my community in impactful, lasting ways.

It is revolutionary for any trans person to choose to be seen and visible in a world that tells us we should not exist.

I'm always skeptical about representations of trans people, especially when trans people are not making the work.

It is my solemn duty to be an ally to the trans community.

I knew a transsexual guy whose only ambition is to eat, drink, and be Mary.

Trans stories have now entered the mainstream in this fantastic way, but the most important thing is what follows from that is hopefully a shift in the experience of trans people - so that there's more acceptance in the culture to the issues they face and more support.

For me, Caitlyn Jenner is such a huge role model. She's really making a difference in our society by just being brave and sharing her story. People say she's not brave and courageous, but to me, she is so brave and courageous.

2014 was a good year for transgender rights.

I recall the magic being on set for season one of 'Transparent.' The trans inclusivity of our set was unparalleled at the time.

According to the media, trans women were subject to pain and punch lines. Instead of proclaiming that I was not a plot device to be laughed at, I spent my younger years internalizing and fighting those stereotypes.

I don't dedicate my whole life to being a trans advocate. But I do believe that me, and how I represent myself and how I am honest and open to everybody, I do feel like I'm doing something for the trans community.

I want to create a place where trans people and our allies could come together to share experiences, information and ideas. Being transgender or loving someone who is transgender can be challenging in our society and I hope that members of this site will also use this space as a place to support and encourage each other. Together, we can strengthen our community and open the hearts and minds of others.

I would say what's really interesting about me personally is that I've taken my transgender experience, and I've looked at it on the bright side, on the positive side.

Many of the trans women who are in our world are also in Caitlyn's Jenner world. And yes I've definitely spoken to her multiple times, talked to her, socialized with her. It's a small community when all is said and done, the trans community in Los Angeles. So everybody really knows each other and everybody's in contact.