Visibility is being brave.
Visibility is being seen.
Visibility is being counted.
Visibility is disruptive.
Visibility is love.
For our most vulnerable friends and neighbors, visibility can be deadly. At least 38 transgender were fatally shot or otherwise violently killed in 2022, of which more than 81% were people of color, according to the Human Rights Campaign. Today, the ACLU is tracking 378 anti-LGBTQ bills across the United States, and Ohio is not yet on the map. Yet The Buckeye Flame, an Ohio LGBTQ+ publication, has identified multiple anti-LGBTQ bills already proposed in the chamber.
With civil liberties in flux, from reproductive rights to voting rights and LGBTQ+ rights to educational freedom, we invite our friends to become disrupters for justice. It all starts with community.
The 2023 Transgender Day of Visibility celebration aims to inspire advocacy to create a sense of safety for all individuals within our community. Yellow Springs Pride, Inc., Inclusive Resilient Yellow Springs Coalition and Antioch College are bringing four inspiring guests for the educational program:
Shelby Chestnut
Executive Director, Transgender Law Center, and Antioch Board of Trustees Chairperson
Shelby (they/he) is movement leader and policy expert, demonstrated with over 20 years of experience. Being both white and descended from the Assiniboine tribe of Montana, they grew up in a rural town with a single mom. They are the first Native trans executive director at Transgender Law Center, where they started as the Director of Policy and Programs. Prior to TLC, Shelby served as the Director of Community Organizing and Public Advocacy at the New York City Anti-Violence Project. Throughout their decades of experience, notable successes include helping launch projects like the Disability Project, Black Trans Circles, and the Trans Agenda for Liberation, the community-led guide outlining solutions towards a better world for all. Additionally, they’ve been among coalitions advancing the Violence Against Women Act and the NYC Right to Know Act, increasing resources for LGBTQ survivors of domestic violence, and creating rapid response models for anti-LGBTQ violence. Shelby is a graduate of Antioch College and The New School, and currently the chair of the Board of Trustees at Antioch College.
Iden Crockett Artist, Writer and Poet
Artist, writer, and poet Iden Crockett creates intensely personal pieces of art. Her words and her pictures tell the story of her journey through ptsd, depression and the discovery of her identity as a transgender woman. She is the author of Black, White, and Red All Over an illustrated volume of poetry available on amazon.com as well as the monthly column “My Name is Iden” and the blog “Ask a Transperson” both for the Yellow Springs News. She lives in Yellow Springs with her wife and three children. Follow her work here: www.mynameiside.com
Stevie Keck (Stevie Phoenix) Advocate and Entertainer
Stevie Keck is a nonbinary trans man living in southern Michigan. Originally from Fremont, OH, Stevie founded Fremont Ohio Pride, a non profit organization that serves the LGBTQIA+ community, including hosting the city’s first ever pride festival in 2021. Stevie has had opportunities to converse with lawmakers and politicians about issues impacting our community on local and national levels, and continues his activism as a drag king after the sun goes down under the moniker Stevie Phoenix. He has spoken the last two years at Fremont’s Trans Day of Remembrance Vigil, and is excited to share the importance of visibility.
Dee Arianne Rockwood Author and Karate Master
Dee Arianne Rockwood lives near Yellow Springs and can be found Tuesday evenings and Friday mornings at the Yellow Springs Senior Center, teaching tai-chi for balance and wellness, and at Antioch College Wellness Center, volunteering in the gym and health club.
Now in her mid-70s, Dee is the subject of a recently released novel by Villager Judith Skillings, Psy.D., about Dee rediscovering herself in the late 1980s, when she was diagnosed with multiple personality disorder. The main character, Stacy and Jack, must learn to communicate so Stacy can take the lead once again. Dee attributes her mental health condition to the trauma of being forced to act like a boy as a young child. Today, she is a thriving woman with a fulfilling life.
Dee is a grandmaster at multiple karate schools after having her own successful career, including winning medals at the Trans Am Games and the Olympics. Dee also enjoys biking, scuba diving, motorcycling, skiing and socializing at the local wineries. She enjoys writing action, adventure and fiction novels, including Stolen Lives, available through Amazon, and her newest book, Life, Liberty and the Pursuit of Happiness, which will be released soon by TransGender Publishing. THE RIVETING STORY OF A TRANSGENDER WOMAN’S JOURNEY OF SELF-DISCOVERY
Lee Wade Black Trans Men Talk Podcast "Black Trans Men Talk" is a podcast that gives Black trans men a platform to discuss things like gender, sexuality, masculinity, and physical, mental, and emotional health. “The podcast started out as a class project that was supposed to be only one episode but I decided to continue with it after seeing the impact it had on those who I shared it with. Episode 1 is a conversation with my dad sharing his perspective on me being a Black trans man shortly after he was released from a 3 year prison sentence.” - Lee Wade
TDOV PLANNING COMMITTEE Phillip O’Rourke: President, Yellow Springs Pride, Inc.
Emily Seibel: Executive Director, Yellow Springs Home, Inc.; Steering Committee Member/Co-Founder, Inclusive & Resilient Yellow Springs Coalition; and Co-Founder, YS Pride
Alex Scott: Lead Convener, Inclusive & Resilient Yellow Springs Coalition; Outreach & Fundraising Manager, Yellow Springs Home, Inc.
Shadia Alverez: Executive Director, Coretta Scott King Center for Cultural and Intellectual Freedom
Rosemarie Blake: Chair of Community Council, Antioch College
Alissa Paolella: Yellow Springs Pride, Inc.
Special thanks to the following for their event contributions and support:
Videography | Yellow Springs Community Access Working with local government, community members, and community organizations to create and broadcast.
Event Photography | Lee Wade of Black Trans Men Talk
Capturing meaningful moments of diverse people, places, and events. Contact Lee Wade Photography
