Celebrating #TDOV with 64 Trans Stories from Western Pennsylvania

Transgender Day of Visibility Pennsylvania

In honor of the Day of Trans Visibility, here are 64 stories from neighbors who live in Pittsburgh, Erie, Johnstown, Greensburg, New Castle, Bradford and beyond. These stories have been curated from the #AMPLIFY archive which has 290 stories total to date. Some are in their early 20s while others are closer to 60. Some […]

With Anti-Transgender Editorial, Post-Gazette Officially Proves that Pittsburgh Never Was #StrongerThanHate

The phrase ‘a new low’ seems inadequate to describe the mean-spirited, churlish, vicious, nasty, hateful bitterness of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette Editorial Board. But writing out that serious of descriptive words repeatedly is equally insufficient to capture the true evil this Board has embraced. This week, they published this scathing indictment of Twitter’s new speech policies […]

52 Trans Stories from Western Pennsylvania Honor the Lost Voices on this #TDOR

November 20 is the Trans Day of Remembrance.  If you read our blog regularly, you know that we try very hard to honor the lives and acknowledge the deaths of our trans neighbors who have been lost to violence. We encourage you to participate in local TDOR events. This is the list of neighbors lost […]

Rest In Power, Dakota James

Dakota James Missing Person

I read with mixed emotions the news that the body of 23-year-old Dakota James had been found in the Ohio River near Neville Island. Dakota has been missing since January 25, 2017. There’s no appropriate comment, nothing I can think of that would bring comfort to the exhausted family who lost a 23-year-old adult child […]

The Anxious Life Part Six: I’m Not Talking About Orlando

The Anxious Life Part Six: I’m Not Talking About Orlando

I don’t want to talk about it. I put the rage and fear and hopelessness into a little box and tucked that into my heart in a little space that keeps it secure. I was very sad for very many days. I spent those hours asleep or numb which is what you feel when you […]

Trans Day of Visibility in Pittsburgh

Beginning in 2009, March 31 has been recognized as the International Day of Trans Visibility. In the spirit of the day, I am sharing the AMPLIFY posts from trans identified contributors. To date, we have published 25 contributions from trans contributors, representing about 21% of our contributors. They have ties to at least 13 of […]

Kaley is Trans, Queer and a Fan of Gender Outlaws

Transgender Beaver County

Please note that this is our 70th published AMPLIFY q&a since we began in late May 2015. Thank you to Kaley and everyone who has shared their story. Name: Kaley Age: 30 County of Residence: Allegheny, Grew Up in Butler County Preferred Pronouns: she/her How do you describe your identity?  I am first a human being, then a woman, […]

How To Sign Up For Toys for Tots in Western PA – 2015 Edition

I’m actually late this year with this annual blog post. Finding information on Toys for Tots programs can be time-consuming and challenging. My work with the AMPLIFY project has expanded my awareness of how difficult it can be to access programs the further your family lives from an urban hub. My hope is to add […]