Upcoming Publication – Now Available for Pre-Order!

gender liberators is an anthology of writing, poetry, correspondence, photos, paintings, flyers, and other ephemera by trans*, two-spirit, nonbinary, and trans-adjacent authors and creators from 20th century turtle island/North America. The materials in this book were identified and selected based on hundreds of interviews that Sky Syzygy has conducted with elders, archivists, scholars, and cultural workers about their lives and work, and about moments, individuals, and groups that were deeply influential but have been underappreciated in accounts of trans* history. Through this community guidance, this anthology centers the perspectives and visual and print culture of trans and queer life, and resists some of the biases of existing histories and archives that under represent the geographic South and Midwest, trans* communities of color, and trans masculine communities. This book seeks to let the included authors and materials speak for themselves and dialogue with each other, while honoring the multiplicity of voices, formats, and perspectives included: gender liberators is printed on more than a dozen different paper colors with multiple inks and printing techniques including risograph, letterpress, digital offset, and traditional paper marbling. The cover wrap includes a citation for each image in the book as well as an index for researchers.

This work grows out of Syzygy’s larger project which seeks to bring the wisdom of trans* elders and ancestors to bear on the current challenges we face in gender justice movements, using archival materials as a bridge between trans* pasts and futures. Over the last two years, she has located and digitized over 13,000 pages of documents of trans* history in several dozen university, community, and private collections, and is sharing these on a digital archive at http://gender.network. Most of these materials were not previously digitized or accessible outside of the archives in which they are held. Syzygy believes that collecting and sharing these stories is healing: “our stories are key to healing our communities from the scars of transphobia. We heal when we connect with ancestors and learn more about ourselves through them. We heal when we receive testament to our continued existence in this world. We heal when given the opportunity to repair rifts from past conflicts. Finally, we heal when we can grow from the wisdom of passing time. Gathering around material histories and holding space for dialogue offers us the opportunity to engage with all these modes of healing.”

For more information or to pre-order, email [email protected]

Out of print.