Steven Lam and Neal Broverman
June 20, 2006
ANDREA JAMES
- AGE: 39
- IDENTIFIES AS: Bisexual transgender woman
- OCCUPATION: Producer and activist
- HOMETOWN: Los Angeles
- RELATIONSHIP STATUS: Single
How do you see yourself fitting into the gay community?
Where [transgender people] used to be seen as a liability politically, a lot of the forward-thinking people see our goals are on a parallel course as gay and lesbian goals. LGBT people all face gender-based oppression. We’re all somehow transgressing those boundaries. Transgender [rights are] about 20 years behind, and that’s what we’re really starting to change.
Are you religious?
I consider myself agnostic but guided by a set of unwavering moral principles.
Is the gay community welcoming to people of color?
Any great political movement is a constant chipping away at the monolithic stereotype. We still have a ways to go, but we’re starting to see there’s such diversity. “Gay” now conjures up a multitude of images.
What are the gay signifiers in 2006?
I think the most important thing int the LGBT world now is the radical assimilationist–the people who aren’t threatening to Americans. You need Malcolm X and you need Oprah. You need Andrea Dworkin and you need Ellen DeGeneres.