Beyond Magenta: Transgender and Nonbinary Teens Speak Out

Jessy is a transgender Thai American man and the child of immigrants. As the first interviewee presented in Beyond Magenta, Jessy presents a largely positive personal narrative of a female-to-male binary transition. As the book is intended to be a resource for trans teens and their families, Jessy is likely to be many readers’ introduction to the concept of being transgender. His story includes some hallmarks of what might be considered a “typical” trans narrative, including having felt like a boy from a young age.

While some of the narratives in the book are fraught with trauma, Jessy projects a sense of positivity and comfort with himself throughout his interview. He comes from a stable white-collar family that is now strongly supportive, and he expresses confidence in who he is. While Jessy’s story is a digestible portrait of a successful transition, however, he also shares some details that help illuminate The Diversity of the Trans Experience. For example, he has a steady girlfriend who identifies as a lesbian and only uses she/her pronouns for him, which doesn’t bother him, and is “embracing [his] in-between-ness” (42).

Christina is a transgender Latin American woman. Her story presents a narrative mix of despair and struggle and self-acceptance and triumph. As a child of religious parents and a Catholic school graduate, Christina faced a great deal of abuse and harassment for failing to conform to traditional masculinity. Though she overcame immense social pressures to be herself, The Harm of Social Rejection still affects her life. She reports feelings of despair and frustration regarding her desire to measure up to those she calls “biological girls.” Like Jessy, Christina reports knowing she was a girl from a young age, which she explored in part by play-acting traditionally feminine activities such as going shopping.

Christina’s chapter largely focuses on overcoming domestic issues, social problems, and internal struggles. She responded to rejection from her peers in high school with defiant self-acceptance. Christina reported her ongoing struggles with street harassment, dating, and medical transition. However, her mother has overcome her initial bigotry toward trans people and learned to embrace and support her child.

Mariah is a transgender woman of color. Her childhood was greatly affected by her removal from her grandmother’s care and subsequent placement in a series of foster homes and residential treatment centers. She relates experiences of abuse, poverty, and persecution. The details related to her sexual experiences, especially at such a young age, contributed to Beyond Magenta’s ban from several libraries and schools.

Jessy and Christina are both heterosexual people who experienced binary gender dysphoria from a young age and report no sexual trauma. Mariah’s journey of self-discovery, in addition to being more sexually explicit, introduces different modes of self-exploration and identity. At different stages in her childhood and youth, Mariah reports feeling like both a boy and a girl. She also identifies as bisexual. She explicitly describes her transition as ongoing.

Cameron is transmasculine and white. The first nonbinary person to appear in the book, Cameron prefers they/them pronouns. Cameron presents an optimistic narrative of female-to-nonbinary transition marked by nearly universal support from family, friends, and community. Cameron enjoyed a stable and secure childhood and spent their adolescence experimenting with fashion and gender signifiers. They are also the only interviewee who does not report feeling like they embodied a different gender identity in early childhood.

Cameron’s story provides a critical counterpoint to the assumption that being transgender is a natural cause for suffering. Unlike the other interviewees, Cameron does not report experiencing gender dysphoria or much harassment from others. They attribute their comfort and confidence to the support of their parents and friends. This counterpoint to the harm of social rejection serves as a powerful follow-up to Mariah’s often painful youth in CPS and placement homes.

Nat is transmasculine, multicultural, and Chilean American. Their story presents a narrative marked by alienation and confusion. Much of this difficulty stems from their gender dysphoria; however, it is also the result of learning disabilities and mental illness. Nat is also the sole example of an intersex person in the book.

Nat and Cameron are the only two nonbinary interviewees in the book. They both were also AFAB, which naturally draws comparisons. Despite these similarities, their stories are extremely different. Where Cameron is celebratory and confident, Nat expresses feelings of displacement, isolation, and profound confusion.

Luke is a transgender man and the only interviewee from outside of the New York area. His story presents an uneasy but overall simple narrative that is built on self-exploration through art. Like most of the interviewees, Luke resonated with a different gender identity from an early age. He reports struggling with bullies at school for being boyish as a child. He also reports that his parents are dismissive of his identity and reluctant to support him.

Luke shares a bit in common with many of the other interviewees. Like Jessy, he is a binary trans man. Like Christina, he is struggling to gain his parents’ full support. Like Cameron, Luke can rely on his community (Proud Theater) for support. Like Nat, he immerses himself in the performing arts. His position as the final interviewee is emphasized by his chapter marking Part 2 of the book and its unique structure, which reflects his interest in theater.