NotSoWittyWriter
We had some amazing speakers and support, like Charlie Caine! (@CharlieXCaine on twitter)
And our pride team came together so well, cis and trans alike worked together to create something moving and impactful.
My thank you note from tumblr!
Check them out here:
The Protest against the exclusion of trans people from the conversion therapy ban went very well, roughly 200 people turned up – twice the amount of the last protest which also went extremely well – and there were some amazing speakers there, both trans people and cis allies. The run up to the event was somewhat draining for me and so I feel like my speech as chair of Norwich Pride’s Trans Advisory Group could have been a little better, but it still seemed to go down well. We had a fantastic song performance on acoustic guitar, and some fantastic on the fly speeches during the open mic session. Charlie and I also did interviews with Amy from BBC Radio Norfolk which will be coming out soon and I’m excited to share.
My Personal quote: “The government’s exclusion of trans people from the ban is deliberately malicious, but acknowledging that people deserve to be protected, they’ve admitted that they either don’t care, or want us to be mistreated with torture and abuse.”
I’m working with Norwich Pride in my role as the chair of the Trans Advisory Group to put together a protest this weekend, we’ll be protesting the governments complete lack of regard for trans welfare and their propensity for lies. Having agreed to ban all conversion therapy they then decided they wouldn’t (not the first time they’ve decided to renegade on a promise), eventually relenting to protect Lesbian, Gay, and Bi people under pressure – but having publicly admitted that it’s a torture that needs eradicating they refused to protect trans people despite them having a higher chance of being subjected to it. It’s clear, then, that they either have such disdain for trans people that abusing us is either a good thing in their view, or that we don’t qualify as humans and therefore it doesn’t matter if we’re horrendously treated.
There have been a lot of protests lately around this subject, huge ones that have real impact and I only hope that ours will uplift and inspire our local community, and assure everyone that there are people out there dedicated to equality and human rights.
There’s a hashtag going around social medias at the moment, and I wanted to take my time in writing something meaningful and uplifting. Hopefully someone will find them helpful!
Transcripts:
Twitter:
#Letters4TransKids embracing who you are can be scary, but also great! You’re on a path to finding new levels of happiness and that’s something to celebrate. It’s ok to like who you are and your experiences, and to feel pride <3
Tumblr:
To any trans youth (or adult) reading this,
There’s this prevailing feeling that for us to be really valid we have to experience constant debilitating pain, cause if we don’t want to be trans but we are then that’s forgivable (begrudgingly).
This still puts a lot of unspoken blame on us that many cultures/environments nurture, and we’re left with a lot of shame, which is often one of the key factors in mental health problems in gender diverse people.
And while many of us do feel that pain and shame at some point in our lives, there’s also a lot of joy to be had in embracing who you are and your path – wherever that leads. You can gain a brand new outlook on many things, and new ways of experiencing connections to other people. Life can start to become more colourful and vibrant.
Sometimes everything seems bleak, but there’s a great life to live if you look for it.
I Made this for the Trans Day Of Visibility event I ran recently, which was a creative exhibition of art and performances. I wanted to do a self portrait and was captivated by the idea that people are often curious about the scarring on my arm from my gender affirmation surgery, and I know people often want to touch it which can be crossing a boundary (that people always respect though) and wanted to offer people the opportunity to become more intimately familiar with the effects of transitioning without overstepping personal lines.
I wanted to use the nonbinary flag colours to represent that gender identity doesn’t determine physical expression – there was a way I needed to be and that makes me feel whole, and it doesn’t lock me into a gender binary. The background is purple ink, the arm and fist is water colour paper that I sewed down with a machine to echo the idea of stitches and surgery, and the keloid scaring is yellow candle wax that I painted on and then had to melt a little to give it a smooth surface. It isn’t a one-to-one comparison as my scarring pattern is pretty complex, and my skin and scars are much more supple, but it’s pretty close.
I measured the frame I made out of matchsticks carefully, but it still twisted somehow and it was difficult to get it to fit well. Nevermind, it’s not a deal breaker!
Ultimately, I have pride in my scars and don’t want to hide them away.
I’ve been working on this project for the last two and a bit years – it started after the 2019 general election but due to pandemic and how difficult it can be working with collaborators it took a few years to debut. Lots of people came together to contribute to this with short stories, poetry, and art – as it’s a community project it’s available for free on Lulu!
I designed the cover as well as contributing to and organising this project, which I think has been successful – hopefully there’ll be more like it in the future.
I painted this as a background for a Norwich Virtual Pride 2020 video, in which I narrated a short story, It depicts one of the bronze lions outside Norwich City Hall (acrylic).
A tale so tall is just as small
As the Lizard Laying in the dirt
Soon to sprout hair and fight on what’s fair
While the falling stars flirt
With an Earth across the way
I started working on this for a unions LGBTQ+ history performance, first verse I wrote turned out to be the last, and the best!
Copywrite Andrew K Copeman Feb 21st 2022
Asylum from Asylum (working title) is a play about two Prisoners in Norwich’s old “Insane asylums” – incarcerated for being poor and LGBTQ+, the play follows their time inside and their abuse at the hands of Doctor Galbraith. It features diegetic songs with piano accompaniment, through which the characters tell their stories of discrimination and suffering in the asylums. The project so far has been accepted for funding by the councils Arts Project, and a bid has been submitted to the Arts Council to write the first draft of a script and a prose accompaniment, and to put on a selected viewing for industry professionals which will be recorded and made into a promotional video.
The play is an allegory for the continued oppression of easily subjugated groups – those who live in enforced poverty, and those who belong to minorities – through the systematic abuse in health care and the justice system.
Song titles I have so far:
Down To Hell(sdon) – one of the asylums was (and is actually still running as a hospital) in Hellsdon.
True Manifest – of the “devil” in mental health difficulties.