By Sarah Baker
Peninsula College was visited by a panel of ESPRIT presenters, all trans women and all willing to discuss their experience as transexual members of society, on Thursday, May 12.
There were five women altogether: Karen, from Washington State and currently residing in Redmond; Stephanie, from Port Angeles and Forks, now living in Poulsbo; Deborah, who has lived in both Kansas and Washington; Lovina, from and currently residing in Victoria and Alyssa, born and raised in Seattle, but now living just north of Seattle.
The panel talk covered everything from gender-neutral bathrooms to the definitions of drag queens and fetishistic transvestites.
One thing that stayed consistent over the entire event was the unashamed and unapologetic ways each woman presented herself and her lifestyle.
Alyssa said that she considered her transgender persona to be her “second shot at a social life,” and Deborah proudly pronounced, concerning using the women’s bathroom, “if they want to arrest me and throw me in a prison, then go for it. I’ve done a lot and I deserve to be where I am in life.”
The talk was an educational peek through the perspectives of five diverse transexual women, who will hopefully grace Peninsula College with their panel discussion for many years to come.
