Author: Team Mercury

Hello, we are Team Mercury! Please contact our socials or email us at team.mercury@trans-media.org if you have any questions or concerns!

Categories
Location Trans History

Institut für Sexualwissenschaft (Institute for the Science of Sexuality)

The Institut für Sexualwissenschaft was the worlds first research center to specialize in sexology, which included studies into the nature of gender. This institute was incredibly progressive for it’s time when it was founded in 1919, and was tragically destroyed by the Nazis in 1933. 

More Info:

The Institute had libraries, a massive archive, along with several divisions dedicated to all sorts of things from medical and psych evaluations to marriage counseling and lecture halls! The organization also supported women’s rights, sex ed, and birth control. The institute’s motto was “per scientiam ad justitiam”, or “through science to justice”. The building also included a small museum displaying sexual artifacts. It was funded through a charity run by it’s founders, the Magnus Hirschfield Foundation.

Role in Trans History:

Magnus Hirschfield invented the early term for transgender, “transsexual”, in an essay written in 1923, after coining the earlier term “transvestite” in 1910! Trans people were frequently employed at the institute, commonly as maids or receptionists. The Institute also offered bottom surgery, facial masculinization and feminization surgery, and hair removal procedures! The Institute’s main surgeon specializing in gender-affirming procedures, Ludwig Levy-Lenz, once said that, though these early surgeries were sometimes experimental and dangerous, his transgender patients were always the most grateful patients he’d ever worked with. The Institute also devised a way to protect trans people and crossdressers in a country where being visibly gender non-conforming was illegal, through “transvestite passes”, which were essentially doctor’s notes saying that a citizen is trans.

The Institute also recorded research and cases of intersexuality, mostly lead by Magnus Hischfield. He helped intersex people get sex reassignment surgery, and advocated for intersex people to be able to choose their legal gender at age 18. Photos were taken of intersex people as evidence of their existence.

History:

The Institute was founded by Magnus Hirschfield, the leader of the Wissenschaftlich-humanitäres Komitee (Scientific-Humanitarian Commitee), which was a pro-LGBTIA+ group that utilized science in it’s arguments, Arthur Kronfield, a well-known psychotherapist, and Friedrich Wertheim, a dermatologist. It’s first building opened on July 6th of 1919, with a neighboring building being added in 1922. In just the first year, thousands of clients came in for consultations where they were very often given help for free, and over a thousand lectures were held there. 

The Institute gained international interest, drawing in researchers and activists from all over the world, including multiple visits from medical officials from the Soviet Union. A small group led by Hirschfield eventually took a trip to Moscow and Leningrad for the same purpose. 

In 1928, they published an informative paper on birth control, of which around 100,000 copies were distributed in the next four years. 

Early on in the Institute’s lifespan, from the 20’s onward, it and Hirschfield found themselves under fire from the German far-right, which would later become the Nazi party. Hirschfield was shot at and assaulted multiple times, and was seriously injured during one of these attacks. By 1929, the violence became severe enough that he stopped appearing in public. The Nazi’s genocide of queer people began in February of 1933, and the month after, a lawyer working for the institute, Kurt Hiller, was captured and tortured at a concentration camp. That March, a Nazi hate group raided the Institute headquarters, seizing books, records, and artifacts, and returned four days later to follow up and conduct a book burning. Some estimates say that around 25,000 books and journal were destroyed, and it’s theorized that Dora “Dörchen” Richter, the first trans woman to have a full sex reassignment surgery, was killed in one of these raids. Art, medical documents, artifacts, and a bronze bust of Hirschfield, who was in Ascona, Switzerland, were thrown into the fire. 

The Institute was forced to shut down after the raids, and was never successfully reestablished. 🙁

 

Categories
Activist Historical Figure Transfem wlw

Sylvia Rivera

Ms. Rivera was a trans woman and extremely prominent transgender rights activist from the late 1960’s up until her death in the early 2000’s. She made huge sacrifices for the trans community, fighting against trans people’s exclusion from the queer community, and was someone who truly made a difference for people like us. 

More info:

  • Pronouns/gender: she/her, transfem

Her story:

Sylvia was born in 1959 in New York City, to an absent father and a mother who took her own life when Sylvia was three. She was then put into her grandmother’s care, who beat her when she started experimenting with feminine presentation. At age eleven, she ran away from home, and resorted to prostitution as a means for survival. She found a mother figure when she was twelve in Marsha P. Johnson, a drag queen who inspired her to fight for trans inclusion in queers spaces, especially for trans women of color! Marsha and Sylvia both participated in the fight for African-American rights, and were both involved in the extremely important event in queer history, the Stonewall Riot of 1969. Sylvia stayed awake and rioted for six days, exhilarated by what she described as the start of a revolution. 

Sylvia led protests soon after protesting the police raid that spurred Stonewall, and resisted arrest following the event. Though the first Pride Parades started a year after Stonewall in 1970, trans folks were excluded and told not to attend. She continued her activism throughout the 70’s, fighting for the inclusion of trans people in the Sexual Orientation Non-Discrimination Act, which would later be passed in 2002 and illegalized any sort of discrimination regardless of sexuality or gender identity. Her and Marsha formed STAR (Street Transvestite Action Revolutionaries) in 1971

Categories
Character Comic Transmasc

Rex Ridley, “Good Arson”

Rex Ridley is, well, I’ll just quote his self-introduction from his first appearance: “I’m Rex Ridley, A.K.A. GOOD ARSON, and I’m a dude and I LIGHT STUFF ON FIRE WITH MY MIND!!“. He is a transmasc mutant from Marvel comics, seen wearing a binder in his first appearance.

Other Info:

  • Pronouns/gender: he/him, transmasc
  • Superpower: Rex has pyrokinesis, the ability to create and control fire telepathically
  • Quotes: “I don’t know if my mom is mad about trans stuff or because I burned down the apartment.”
  • Media Appearances: Seven appearances in Marvel comics

Story (SPOILERS!!)

The quote above shows that, before Rex’s first appearance, he (presumably accidentally) burned down his mom’s apartment. Rex then joined Super Trans, and was a member of the team until and after it’s disbanding. (more detail included here: https://trans-media.org/super-trans/).

 

 

Categories
Activist BIPOC Historical Figure Transfem wlw

Sylvia Rivera

Ms. Rivera was a Puerto Rican transfem transgender rights activist that dedicated her life to the movement, fighting for trans inclusion in queer spaces, which was not always something that could be taken for granted. She was a prominent figure during and after the Stonewall Riot, and formed the Street Transvestite Action Revolutionaries (STAR) with Marsha P. Johnson.

More Info:

  • Pronouns/gender: she/her, transfem
  • Birth date/death date: July 2, 1951–February 19, 2002

Life Story:

Sylvia was born in New York into a very harsh life, with a father that was immediately absent and a mother who took her own life when Sylvia was three. She was then sent to live with her grandmother, who beat her when she began to try on feminine clothing and makeup. She was attacked by another student at school when she was in the sixth grade, was blamed for it, and suspended from school for a week as punishment. At age 11, she ran away from home, and resorted to prostitution as a means for survival. 

A couple months later, Sylvia was found by a local group of drag queen, who took her in as one of their own. Among them was Marsha P. Johnson, who soon became her best and closest friend. It was one of these genderqueer role models that gave her the name that millions would know her by: Sylvia.

Rivera claims to have been involved in the Black Liberation movement in the following years, and participated in the Stonewall Riots during the summer of ’69 along with Marsha. She claims to have been the second protester to throw a Molotov cocktail at the police, and to have been at the riots for six straight days. 

in 1970, Sylvia and Marsha founded STAR and their headquarters, STAR House, which doubled as a home for trans people in need. Though the STAR House didn’t last long, they gave the clothing and shelter to kids like them that they wished they’d had as kids. 

The Stonewall Riots caused a massive change and boost of confidence within the queer rights movement, and the first pride parades began the following year, though drag queens and trans women were excluded. During one of these events in 1973, Rivera jumped onstage with a fellow drag queen, Lee Brewster, cutting off a feminist activist who was talking s**t about qenderqueer people. While being booed by the crowd, Sylvia gave her famous “y’all better quiet down speech”, speaking out about transgender exclusion in the larger trans community. A recording of her speech is linked here. 

During all this, Sylvia had been struggling mentally and with substance abuse, with Marsha at one point claiming that she had problems with heroin, and frequently found herself homeless. After attempting suicide, she left New York and her work as an activist behind, but returned to the city when Marsha died in 1992. 

After her return, she got back into the trans rights movement, and founded the Transy House in 1997, a building with the same goal as the old STAR House. Over time, she became known by some as the “mother of all gay people”, and eventually reformed STAR as the Street Transgender Action Revolutionaries. The new STAR pushed the New York City Transgender Rights Bill and for trans inclusion in the New York State Sexual Orientation Non-Discrimination Act, which were both in some way passed in later years.  

During a pride parade celebrating the 25th anniversary of Stonewall in 1994, Sylvia was given a place of honor! She was finally thanked for her work by people on the streets celebrating at the parade. 

Sadly, she died in 2002 from lung cancer, but her contributions to the cause still live on today. 

Sidenote: 

Though Sylvia claimed to have played a role in the Stonewall Riots, and some remember her being there, several sources, such as her friend Marsha Johnson, claim that she was never there. It’s possible that, if she in fact wasn’t there, she lied to give young Puerto Rican kids a role model.

Categories
Character Comic Transfem

Soph, “Faceshopper”

Sophie (last name unknown), who prefers to go by Soph, is a transfem member of Super Trans with shapeshifting abilities.

Other Info: 

  • Pronouns/gender: she/her, transfem
  • Media Appearances: Seven appearances in Marvel comics
  • Superpower: Soph can shapeshift to look identical to anyone, attaining any superpowers they might have as well.

Story (SPOILERS!!)

Soph was originally a member of the trans support group Super Trans. When the Sinister Syndicate broke into the Matt Baker house during one of their early meetings, she helped fend them off, using her powers to take the appearance of D-Man, who she saved along with Spider-Man by working with the other teens. Soph was a member of Super Trans until it’s eventual disbandment, and fought alongside her teammates once again when Sentin-Ally crashed their first group reunion.

After this battle, Pity Girl called their team the X-Men in a viral video, getting attention the actual X-Men and Mojo, a powerful creature from another dimension known for abducting Mutants and casting them involuntarily in insane and dangerous reality TV shows, exactly what he did to the members of Super Trans. While the pilot episode was being filmed, Soph was suddenly killed by Mojo for shock value. However, Mojo Jr. was able to get her back to the writer’s room, where he was able to make her shapeshift into Wolverine, taking advantage of Wolverine’s advanced healing powers to bring her back from the brink of death. 

The members of Super Trans were eventually rescued by the X-Men, after being trapped in slowed time for decades, during which thousands of episodes were recorded. 

 

Categories
Character Comic Transfem

Nora Kuang, “Pity Girl”

Nora is a transfem mutant in Marvel comics with the power to incapacitate her opponents by telling them her sad stories. She may have an uncomfortable relationship with her grandfather, based on some dialogue from her during a battle (“I cried, knowing I would never see my grandpa again because I didn’t like visiting him that much”).

Other Info:

  • Pronouns/gender: she/her, transfem
  • Superpower: Nora can lull anyone into a hypnotized state by telling them her sad personal stories.

Story (SPOILERS!!)

Nora was a member of Super Trans during it’s entire duration, from it’s first meeting to it’s last. She was there when they fought the Sinister Syndicate alongside Spider-Man and D-Man, and was there when the group defeated Sentin-Ally. After that second fight, Nora called the team the X-Men, which captured the attention of both the real X-Men and a creature named Mojo ((more detail included here: https://trans-media.org/super-trans/).

Categories
Character Game Nonbinary

Rowan Blair III

Rowan is a nonbinary dateable weapon (yes, you read that right) in the hack-and-slash/dating sim visual novel, Boyfriend Dungeon. They are introverted and mysterious, have a very androgynous character design, and are always with their friendly albino crow, named Crowley. Rowan and Crowley can transform into a scythe together, which can be wielded by the player character during combat sections. 

Other info:

  • Pronouns/gender: they/them, nonbinary
  • Media Appearances: Dateable weapon in the game “Boyfriend Dungeon”, both dateable and wieldable as a weapon in combat sections
  • Likes: Wild plants, isolation, animal bones, tea, Crowley (their cute little crow friend), the mountains
  • Dislikes: Crowds, social media

Role in Combat:

During the roguelike hack-and-slash sections, Rowan becomes a scythe with a slow attack speed but very wide attack range. Rowan’s scythe form comes with an ability the creates a black hole that can draw in enemies, dealing massive damage. Their dash move also gives the player momentary invincibility, and they have a stacking ability that temporarily increases their attack power after killing an enemy. This stacking effect and the black hole ability can be upgraded as your relationship with rowan grows

Story (SPOILERS!!)

Rowan can first be met after going to Jesse’s barbeque, if the player goes to the mansion on the furthest point up on the overworld map. There, a “date” event can be found, where you’ll meet Rowan, who’s quite angry and grieving the death of her grandmother, Alice, insisting that you’ve been causing chaos in town. They attempt to kill you, though surrendering and accepting death at their can intrigue them, opening up a possible romance or friendship. Later, they slip a mysterious note under your apartment door, which contains a riddle, in the form of a series of numbers, which, when solved, gives you their phone number!

From then on, the player has the ability to choose either a romantic or platonic relationship through your actions during dialogue.

After decoding their phone number, you can meet Rowan at their mansion for the first date with them that doesn’t involve them threatening your life. You can join them in the woods nearby on a little foraging trip for herbs. Partway through, Rowan walks off on their own, asking the player to stay where they are and wait for them. You can either be sneaky and follow them or do as they ask, but if they find you sitting where they told you to when they come back, you’ll gain a little more of their trust, and they’ll allow you to wield them in combat!

Rowan later invites the player over for comfort, as an appraiser is coming to tell them the value of their mansion. The appraiser, a slimy little b***h named Eric, is extremely rude, and essentially tells Rowan that their home and everything in it is worth much less than it’s actual value. Supporting Rowan through your actions allows you to improve your relationship with them.

When the player meets Rowan at the park, Rowan expresses interest in growing your relationship in a more romantic direction. Here, the player can either choose to accept, or keep your friendship with Rowan as just a friendship. 

During your next visit with Rowan, you’ll find that Crowley has gone missing! After helping Rowan look for them for hours, comforting them along the way. When they finally return to the mansion, they find Crowley waiting for them with a cup of tea for them both.

One day, Crowley delivers a letter to the player from Rowan, asking you to meet them at a fancy little place called Mission San Drago. Rowan talks through their feelings and grief towards Alice’s death, pondering death and the difficulty of moving on. 

On the mountain a little later, Rowan reveals that they’ve recently managed to contact Alice’s spirit, and while talking to her, realized that they’ve relied on the player an unhealthy amount during the grieving process. This is where you can either continue to pursue a romantic relationship with them or move on as close friends. Either way, you and Rowan now have an unbreakable bond. 

Categories
Comic Group Nonbinary Transfem Transmasc

Super Trans

Super Trans was a support group from Marvel comics for transgender mutant youth. The group would eventually become a hero team known as the Next Mutants, and included characters such as Shela Sexton, Morgan Red, and Good Arson. The choice to make this group all Mutants is perfect within the consistent themes of Marvel’s Mutant-related content, as Mutants were and are a stand-in for any oppressed group, ostracized and oppressed for who they are. 

More Info:

  • Members, with hero names, gender and pronouns: Morgan Red (transmasc, he/they), Shela Sexton “Escapade” (transfem, she/her), Reed Fox “Aphelion” (non-binary, they/them), Sophie “Faceshopper” (last name unknown, transfem, she/her), Rex Ridley “Good Arson (transmasc, he/him), Gabe “Bad Guy” (last name unknown, transmasc, he/him), ZZ Phalen “Harmonize” (transfem, they/them), Mojo Junior (cisgender male, he/him), Nora Kuang “Pity Girl” (last name unknown, transfem, she/her)
  • Also known as: The Next Mutants, The Morally Superior X-Men
  • Media Appearances: Seven Marvel comic series

Team History (SPOILERS!!)

Super Trans began as a support group for young, trans Mutants, run by D-Man at the Matt Baker House in Queens, New York. In an early meeting, they rescued Spider-Man when he was driven there by the Sinister Syndicate, an all-female iteration of the classic supervillain team, the Sinister Six. 

Super Trans was later disbanded, due to the bigoty-driven controversy surrounding Mutants. However, the group’s members stayed in touch, and would later reunite. Their first meet-up was crashed by Sentin-Ally, a straight, cisgender ally obsessed with joining their team, who they quickly defeated. After the battle, Pity Girl made the mistake of calling their team the X-Men, which both caught the attention of the actual X-Men, and got them kidnapped by Mojo, a powerful creature from another dimension known for abducting Mutants and casting them involuntarily in insane and dangerous reality TV shows, exactly what he did to the members of Super Trans. They were trapped in slowed time for decades, during which thousands of episodes documenting their harsh struggles were recorded. They were eventually rescued with help from the X-Men and Mojo’s grandson, Mojo Jr., and adopted their current name, the Next Mutants. 

Notes:

  • I never knew about this little group before researching for this site, but I’m so glad I do now!! Seeing a group of young explicitly trans superheroes is so empowering – Sylvie : )
Categories
Character Comic Transmasc

Morgan Red

In the Marvel Comics universe, Morgan Red is Shela Sexton‘s best friend, and, like Shela, is transgender! Morgan is a transmasc mutant with exceptional computer skills, and works freelance as a game designer. Morgan has the fun ability to turn anything organic into chocolate!

Other info:

  • Pronouns/gender: he/they, transmasc
  • Media Appearances: 6 appearances in Marvel Comics, supporting character
  • Superpower: Morgan has a unique power, called Transchocolification, which allows him to turn any organic material into chocolate, up to eight ounces at a time. This usually manifests as milk chocolate, though the type and qualities of the chocolate depends on the original material.

Story (SPOILERS!!)

Born in Medford, Massachusetts, Morgan became best friends with Shela Sexton when they were in fifth grade. After the two moved into an apartment together, they both joined Super Trans, a support group for young transgender mutants. 

Morgan was kidnapped by the U-Men, a group of humans obsessed with becoming mutants through any means necessary, along with Shela, Leo Eng, Wolfsbane, and Cerebella, during a rally in New York’s Washington Square Park. While fleeing the U-Men’s headquarters, Morgan used his powers to turn their stash of Kick, a drug that gives mutants a temporary high and power boost, into chocolate mousse. 

He later moved to Astoria in Queens, New York, where Raine Sinclair, Wolfsbane, offered him a home in Krakoa, the sentient island that thousands of mutants at that time called home, an offer he declined. Instead, Morgan and Raine went shopping, but actually ended up finding a dragon in a lab located in the sewer system.

Categories
Genderqueer Song Transfem

I/Me/Myself by Will Wood

Description:

I/Me/Myself is a song about Will Wood’s experiences with his gender identity, and is a fairly well-known song within the trans community. The song blew up on TikTok because of a live performance he did, in which he switched out some lyrics and sang this instead: “My pronouns aren’t your business shitlord, I wish I could be a girl, and that way you’d wish you could kick my fucking teeth in”.

Song links:

Spotify, Apple Music, YouTube Music

Full song lyrics:

I’ve been feeling lightheaded
since I lost enough weight to fit back in my skin
Flower petals and feathers tether me to the ground
(pound for pound)
Take my tea for formaldehyde
for my feminine side since the day that I died
While I whittle my bones until I’m brittle, am I pretty now?
For some reason I find myself lost in what you think of me,
and too confused to choose who I should be
and now you’ve got me thinking

I wish I could be a girl,
and that way you’d wish I could be your girlfriend, boyfriend
Am I pretty enough to lie to?
I wish I could be a girl,
and that way you’d wish I could be your girlfriend, boyfriend
Just little old me in a big, big world
Little old me in a big world
I wish I were a girl

I’ve been feeling lighthearted
since I gained enough weight back to cover, cover, cover my bones
I get dressed up in shadows one leg at a time – we’re so alike
But if the shoe fits, then I won’t try it on
You’ll be walking out early, but the show must go on
No, I know that I’m wrong
but I love how you’re on my side when I cross that line
It’s been a point of contention between myself
and this body that they stuck me in
The privilege of being born to be a man
and now you got me thinking

I wish I could be a girl,
and that way you’d wish I could be your girlfriend, boyfriend
Am I pretty enough to lie to?
I wish I could be a girl,
and that way you’d wish I could be your girlfriend, boyfriend
Just little old me in a big, big world
Little old me in a big world
I wish

Eating your prosthetic,
meet your anesthetic criteria
Pathetic seeing you become acetic
Say my name like a slur, but I’ve been called worse
And I’ve heard it all before, no this isn’t a first
Let me be the void you fill with taxidermy fingerprints,
taxonomize our differences
I am quantum physics,
my witness brings me into existence

I wish I could be a girl,
and that way you’d wish I could be your girlfriend, boyfriend
Am I pretty enough to love back?
No, not yet
I wish I could be a girl,
and really I’d prefer it if you would use I/Me/Myself
Am I pretty enough?
Am I pretty enough to f*cking die?
Little old me in a big world
Well, I would give you my whole world
Little old me in a big world
I wish

(All identities are equally invalid)
(Don’t you think that there’s a chance that you could live without it?)
(All identities are equally invalid)
(Don’t you think that there’s a chance that you could live without it?)
(All identities are equally invalid)
(Don’t you think that there’s a chance that you could live without it?)
(All identities are equally invalid)
(Don’t you think that there’s a chance that you-)