Equality Arizona

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Channel • 2 Shows

Society & Culture

Society & Culture

Updated Weekly
Society & Culture

Society & Culture

Updated Weekly

05/25/2023

Arizona Equals Canella

On this week’s episode of the Arizona Equals Conversation, we talk with Canella Caro, a student at ASU who plan to be a history teacher, about hope in uncertain times, the process of learning empathy, and the culture of right-wing echo chambers online. The Arizona Equals Conversation is an interview podcast collecting the stories of LGBTQ+ people living in Arizona. To listen to past episodes of the podcast, or to sign up to be a guest on a future episode of the show, visit equalityarizona.org/stories. Full Episode Transcript Jeanne Woodbury From Equality Arizona, you're listening to the Arizona Equals Conversation, a podcast about queer people and queer communities in Arizona. I'm Jeanne Woodbury. I'm the interim executive director at Equality Arizona, and each week on the show, I talk with a queer person about their story. Today's interview with my guest, Canella Caro, is something really special. Early on when I was planning this series, I kind of made a promise to myself not to ask the really typical coming out questions like, what changed in your relationship to your family? What changed in your relationship to your friends? Things like that, because it falls right into the narrative that I think people project onto queer people. That it's all about this one moment. That it's all about showing the world who you've always known yourself to be and damn the consequences. And it's not to say that that isn't actually a very common part of people's experiences, but there's so much more going on. And that idea of projection is something we actually ended up talking about in a very different way in relation to Canella's experience as an immigrant and the story people expect from them because of that. But even beyond that, this isn't a story that fits an easy narrative. This is a story about radically reevaluating your relationship to queer people and queer community as part of a longer process of radically reevaluating your relationship to yourself. And it was special for me as an interviewer to hear that story because it's something that I share and it's not something I've found that I have in common with a lot of people. It's also really fascinating because we talk a lot about right-wing echo chambers and the effect that alt-right influencers like Ben Shapiro can have on very, very young people using the internet. There's a lot of complexity here, and I'm so appreciative of Canella for sharing all of that so openly on the podcast. I think that you'll all really enjoy this episode, and I want to get right into it. So let's roll the tape. [BEEP] [TYPING] [CLICK] [MUSIC PLAYING] Canella Caro Hello, my name is Canella. I go by she/they pronouns. Yeah. Jeanne Woodbury Cool. Thanks for being here. While I was struggling to get this audio set up to work, You mentioned you've worked as an audio engineer before, which made me feel kind of terrible. Canella Caro No, don't worry, I suck. (both laughing) Jeanne Woodbury — But — Canella Caro There's a reason I don't do sound anymore. Jeanne Woodbury Where were you doing that work? Canella Caro Oh, it was an internship for this like itty bitty venue down in like downtown Tucson. Jeanne Woodbury Oh, cool. Canella Caro Yeah, the venue used to be like this abandoned hotel that this guy turned into like a bunch of shops. They had a bunch of little artisan shops and played a bunch of live music, and I helped out the main sound guy with that. Jeanne Woodbury That's really cool. Canella Caro Yeah, it was a lot of fun. Jeanne Woodbury How long did you work there? Canella Caro I started working there in February last year and then stopped in July of the same year. Jeanne Woodbury Oh, okay. Yeah. Canella Caro Yeah. Jeanne Woodbury And was that to move up here to Tempe? Canella Caro Yeah, and also I was not being paid. Canella Caro (both laughing) And once I needed the internship for a project I was doing for my high school. Jeanne Woodbury I see, okay. Canella Caro And once that project period ended, there wasn't really much need to keep doing it if I wasn't getting any sort of reward. Jeanne Woodbury That makes sense, yeah. If you can get the credit, then that counts, but otherwise you don't wanna do an unpaid job. Canella Caro Yeah, it goes on my resume though, so. Jeanne Woodbury That's good, yeah. So did you grow up in Tucson then? Canella Caro I was born in Chile. I lived there for like the first three and a half years of my life. Jeanne Woodbury Oh, okay. Canella Caro And then I moved to Arizona. So I've been in Arizona all my life basically, but not necessarily in Tucson. I used to live in, over in Graham County. It's like bordering New Mexico. There's this like itty bitty town, very white town that I lived there for like the first, what, until I was about like nine, and then I moved to Tucson. Jeanne Woodbury And that, is this like a 1,000 person town kind of thing, or? Canella Caro It's, yeah… there were a lot of Mormons. Jeanne Woodbury Interesting. Canella Caro And I was like the only person of color within like a 500 mile radius. (laughs) Jeanne Woodbury Oh wow. Canella Caro For a bit. Like, it was me and this other girl who were like the only non-white people around. Jeanne Woodbury Oh wow. Canella Caro So yeah, it was a pretty small town, pretty tight knit, yeah. Jeanne Woodbury Yeah, how long were you there? Canella Caro Until I was about nine, so for like six-ish years. Jeanne Woodbury Oh, so a lot of formative development. Canella Caro Yeah, yeah. So I spent a lot of my childhood there, but a lot of the important parts were here in Tucson. Jeanne Woodbury Yeah, that makes sense. So do you have memories from Chile or really… Canella Caro Kind of, because I mean, I did go visit every once in a while to see family 'cause all of my extended family's there. I only have my parents and my siblings in the United States. So yeah, I do, I remember little things. Like I remember the fruit magnets on the fridge, the yellow walls, dancing with my dad. Um, that kind of thing. You do always get the occasional random person comes up to you and goes, Hey, I knew you when you were a baby! That kind of thing, that kind of experience Jeanne Woodbury But I don't know you, because I was a baby. Canella Caro Yeah, I don't know. Yeah infant amnesia kinda hit. Jeanne Woodbury Yeah I was even younger than that when my family moved to Arizona, but all my siblings are older than me. So they have more memories from — Pennsylvania is where we moved from — so they have more memories from there than I do. And it's interesting because there's like that family history in a place that I have no memory of, even though I'm technically from there. Canella Caro Yeah. Jeanne Woodbury Are your siblings older than you or younger than you? Canella Caro Oh, I'm the oldest. Yeah. Jeanne Woodbury Oh, okay. Canella Caro Both of my siblings were born here too. So, yeah, I'm the first one to leave the nest. Jeanne Woodbury Yeah. Canella Caro Yeah. Jeanne Woodbury That's an interesting position to be in, I think. Do you have like pressure as like an older sibling role model? Canella Caro Kind of yeah, I mean not like explicitly. Nobody's like — my parents never like compared me, compared my younger siblings to me or anything because I was kind of the black sheep of the family Jeanne Woodbury Oh really? Canella Caro For now. But there is that kind of obligation to be a good example, which I haven't really been but… (laughs) but yeah. Jeanne Woodbury I feel like also for a lot of people who come to the United States as a family, there's extra pressure on the kids to like really take advantage of like going to university here. Canella Caro Yeah. Both of my parents, they both went to university. In fact, I think, like, my mom was like one of the first in her family for generations to go to university Jeanne Woodbury Oh, that's really cool. Canella Caro Because we came from like the south of Chile and it's more like countryside, rural kind of area. So yeah, they're very like academic based. Jeanne Woodbury Is that why they moved here? Canella Caro My dad — we moved here because my father was offered a job here. Jeanne Woodbury Oh, okay. Canella Caro Yeah, the company he works for has like a branch, and… is an American company and has a branch in Chile. So he was offered, and he moved. Jeanne Woodbury Oh, that's cool. Canella Caro Yeah, yeah. No like… no American dream story. Jeanne Woodbury Yeah, just, it's a job and now I'm here. Canella Caro Yeah, he just kind of came here. Jeanne Woodbury That makes sense. Canella Caro Mm-hmm Jeanne Woodbury In Arizona? Canella Caro Yeah, it was in Arizona. Jeanne Woodbury Oh nice, okay, that's cool Canella Caro Yeah, because copper mining is pretty popular here and in Chile, so. Jeanne Woodbury Oh that's right. Yeah, that's a that's a link that makes a lot of sense. Canella Caro Yeah, yeah, industry. Jeanne Woodbury Yeah, I think it's interesting because — my grandma's from Cuba and she moved here not for the reason most people from Cuba have moved here over the past 70 years; she moved here before the revolution to go to college Canella Caro Oh, nice. Jeanne Woodbury Or around that same time. So she wasn't fleeing the revolution or anything like that. She just moved here and she went to college and she stayed here and got a job at Bell Labs. And it's something where, those stories are always interesting because people project a certain image or story onto your experience and then it's like, well it was exciting and interesting because she was a woman in the 50s getting a graduate degree. But at the same time, it's not the story people think it is. Canella Caro Yeah, definitely. I, yeah, people often — when you say like, when I say that I'm an immigrant people often assume that I have an accent or you know, you get the little microaggression of "oh your English is so good." Jeanne Woodbury Do you get that a lot? Canella Caro Wh

05/25/2023

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54 min
11/16/2022

Arizona Equals Sonora

On today’s episode of the Arizona Equals Conversation, Jeanne interviews Sonora Reyes, author of The Lesbiana’s Guide to Catholic School and finalist for the National Book Awards. They talk about the complex process of coming out, how writing fiction can be a way to process trauma, and whether the publishing industry is ready for the kind of characters Sonora wants to write. Links & Context * Sonora Reyes * The Lesbiana’s Guide to Catholic School * Preorder: The Luis Ortega Survival Club * National Book Awards Finalists * Brick Road Coffee * Queerizona * one•n•ten * #actuallyautistic on Tumblr Full Transcript 00;00;00;05 - 00;00;27;20 Jeanne From Equality Arizona, you're listening to the Arizona Equals Conversation. I'm Jeanne Woodbury. I'm the interim executive director for Equality Arizona and the host of this podcast. Each week on the show, I interview a queer person about the map of their life and the paths they've taken through it. Today, I'm really excited to release this interview with National Book Award finalist Sonora Reyes, author of the Lesbiana's Guide to Catholic School. 00;00;28;19 - 00;00;49;21 Jeanne I was actually introduced to Sonora through a previous guest on the podcast, Jesse, one of the co-owners of Brick Road Coffee in Tempe, and I love how that really captures the spirit of the show. You know, as we add more and more stories to the project, it's really rewarding to see how those stories connect to each other, and the picture that paints of Arizona. 00;00;50;25 - 00;01;14;01 Jeanne I absolutely loved my time with Sonora and the conversation we got to have. We covered some really interesting topics, like online community, processing trauma through writing fiction, representations of autism, and I hope that you enjoy it as much as I did. But just like this conversation is mostly spoiler-free for Sonora's novel, I'm going to make this intro pretty much spoiler-free for the conversation. 00;01;14;18 - 00;01;29;16 Jeanne So let's just jump into it. 00;01;33;21 - 00;01;44;03 Sonora Okay, hi, I'm Sonora Reyes. I am an author, of the book The Lesbiana's Guide to Catholic School. I use they/them pronouns. Um, yeah! 00;01;45;02 - 00;01;54;12 Jeanne Alright, thank you! Sonora Sorry that was a horrible introduction. Jeanne No, it's fantastic, it was fantastic. Sonora I'm so bad at intros. Like, what do I say? 00;01;55;11 - 00;02;00;02 Jeanne Yeah, no, I always, um, I always struggle to know how to talk about myself. 00;02;00;03 - 00;02;01;15 Sonora Yeah, it's hard. 00;02;02;12 - 00;02;08;27 Sonora Which is silly because it's like, Oh, I have to do it all the time now. And I still haven't gotten the hang of it. 00;02;10;13 - 00;02;29;13 Jeanne Well, so anyway, it's pretty informal, but thanks for sitting down with me and talking. I bought your book and I read your book and I really loved it. Sonora Aww. Jeanne It took me like 60 pages to really figure out where it was going. I was like, This is interesting. And then I got into it. I was like, Oh, this is actually really fascinating. 00;02;29;26 - 00;02;50;01 Jeanne And one of the things that I wanted to ask you about is, you know, a lot of the book is about levels of being out and what it means to come out and what it's like to be outed. And kind of one of the central tensions, at least in the way I read the book, is between this character, Bo, who's out. 00;02;50;12 - 00;03;16;01 Jeanne And then the main character, who is not out. And they go to the same school, and there's this tension of like, I'm only going to tell Bo that I'm gay. And I wondered, like, is this something that you have experience with? It's like, it's a really nuanced conversation about being out where it's like, Well, why wouldn't she just come out to this person and have this safe relationship? 00;03;16;07 - 00;03;22;23 Jeanne And that's a big part of what the book is about. Sonora Yeah. Jeanne But I really found myself thinking, oh, this is this is unique. This is different. 00;03;23;01 - 00;03;53;06 Sonora Yeah. And I think the reason why I chose to have Yami be so hesitant to come out is because I really wanted to tell a story where when she comes out, she's fully ready and she's fully, like, embraced herself by that point because the first time she came out, she wasn't. And, when she came out to Bianca and then Bianca outed her at her old school. 00;03;53;11 - 00;03;59;00 Sonora So that's not really a spoiler; it's in like the first part of the book. The first page, I think. 00;03;59;08 - 00;04;00;19 Jeanne I think so. Yeah. 00;04;01;28 - 00;04;32;26 Sonora But so since she experienced that I wanted to give her kind of both, like, options. So she had her coming out experience taken from her. And then the next time she gets to take it into her own hands and do it the way she wants to do it in, even if she has this perfect situation where she, one of her best friends, is gay and out and, and her gay friends parents are very supportive of her friend. 00;04;33;11 - 00;05;06;02 Sonora And so she knows that like her friend group would be supportive and she knows that like the same situation wouldn't happen again. But then, in my opinion, I don't think you need to have like a reason to not be ready, if that makes sense? Jeanne I agree, yeah. Sonora So, like, she just wasn't yet, and it just took a little bit for her to, like, she had to kind of dip her toes in a little bit and then find her groove and eventually figure out who she was and figure out when she was ready, so. 00;05;06;09 - 00;05;26;13 Jeanne I remember at one point she's talking with another character — I don't want to spoil things, but there's another character who we find out is bisexual — and she's saying this thing where it's about, Look, I'm out to this person, I'm out to this person: just because I'm not, like, officially out to everyone. Does that mean I'm hiding? 00;05;26;28 - 00;05;45;24 Jeanne And does it mean I'm not out unless I go to every single person and tell them one by one? Sonora Yeah. [laughs] Jeanne That, you know, I'm gay. And I feel like that's something I've heard a lot of people talk about in terms of being out. It's like, well you're constantly coming out. It's not like it becomes a, like a name tag that's stuck to you. 00;05;46;23 - 00;05;51;12 Jeanne How do you think about that? Like in your own life, in terms of being out and — 00;05;51;18 - 00;05;58;16 Sonora Yeah, so I think that I'm at the point where I'm very ready to be out like, you know, writing gay books and like — 00;05;58;16 - 00;06;01;16 Jeanne Yeah. 00;06;01;16 - 00;06;31;06 Sonora So I do whatever I can these days to like actually show people that I'm like, queer in some way. Like, you know, I cut my hair. I like, I don't know, I feel like I, I want to, like, wear clothes that make me feel comfortable. I want to, like, hang out in very queer spaces and just, like, be around people who I feel comfortable with and I kind of do — 00;06;31;07 - 00;06;52;11 Sonora So there's conversation in the book where Bo is saying that like, she's like Schrodinger's gay, right? Where she like always has to scream about being gay and Chinese for anyone to like, actually see her. And I totally feel that, like, myself. Like I'm like, I feel like I just I, but I'm past the point of feeling like I have to, 00;06;52;11 - 00;06;54;06 Sonora And I'm at the point now where I'm like, I want to. 00;06;54;17 - 00;06;55;02 Jeanne Oh, yeah. 00;06;55;05 - 00;06;57;23 Sonora You know, like, I'm just like, I'm just always shouting about it. 00;06;58;08 - 00;07;12;23 Sonora Because I, like, feel ready to, but like, it took me a long time to get there and it took me like a really long time to feel like I was ready to, like, actually do it of my own volition instead of because I felt like I was supposed to, you know? 00;07;13;14 - 00;07;25;23 Jeanne Right. And in the course of that journey, I mean, what was the thing, was it — you know, you mentioned spending time in really specifically queer spaces and around people. Is that what enabled that or was it just, time? 00;07;26;10 - 00;07;49;18 Sonora I think just time because I was in kind of a unique situation where like I've talked about this before, where like I — so I wrote the Lesbiana's Guide to Catholic School. It's about a lesbian cis girl. I am not cis or a girl or a lesbian. And I used to wear that hat; like her experience is what I experienced in high school. 00;07;50;00 - 00;08;13;21 Sonora So I still feel like that's my experience because I very much thought that that was me for a very long time. And so I have worn many hats in my life. And I think you're going to see like a lot of different books that like showcase those different experiences because I want to explore like all of who I am and who I was and who I have been. 00;08;14;15 - 00;08;17;22 Sonora Just so you know, process some trauma. 00;08;19;09 - 00;08;30;14 Sonora I feel like that's my brand now is just processing trauma through my books, but in a like hopeful way I hope — in a way that feels happy at the end. 00;08;30;27 - 00;08;50;13 Jeanne Something I haven't gotten to talk about very much with other authors is — and you, you know, you bring up this idea of processing trauma through your books — there's a unique relationship, right, between like an author and a reader or the audience in general, where you can say these things and it's not like someone's looking at you while you're saying them. 00;08;51;00 - 00;09;10;20 Jeanne But then at the same time, like, I bought your book on a shelf at Changing Hands and it had like a staff recommendation placard. So like a lot of people are reading these and if you put something like that in there, do you feel like it's communication and that's what's helpful in terms of processing or is it just, writing it down? 00;09;10;28 - 00;09;12;12 Jeanne I guess maybe it could be both. 00;09;12;15 - 00;09;37;02 Sonora I think both, but I think for me, like I can t

11/16/2022

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40 min
09/07/2022

Arizona Equals Tin

Tin Subsin is an ASU student, a political activist and a podcast producer. In this episode, we talk about balancing her queer and Asian-American identities, and the way they motivate her to build safer community spaces. Additional context for the conversation * Arizona AANHPI For Equity * 18by Vote * Chasing Cherry Blossoms on Apple Podcasts * Arizona Equals May * Berry’s Model of Acculturation * one•n•ten Arizona Equals is a conversational interview podcast rooted in the idea that stories have power. Each episode, we sit down with an LGBTQ+ person living in Arizona to talk about their community ties and experiences in the state. Visit our website to listen to the full archive or to sign up to be a guest on a future episode of the podcast. Full Transcript 00;00;00;01 - 00;00;26;21 Jeanne Hi. Thanks for listening to the Arizona Equals Conversation. I'm Jeanne Woodbury. I'm the policy and communications director for Equality Arizona and the host of this podcast. Each week on the show, I sit down with an LGBTQ+ person living in Arizona to talk with them about their life. When we created the show, it was born out of a frustration with storytelling projects that focus on an individual and interior journey. 00;00;27;24 - 00;00;53;05 Jeanne I try to understand my guests as people at the nexus of a whole network of relationships, and that could be a relationship to a person or to a community, to your neighborhood, to your city, or to your state. These are the things that really define us as individuals. And with the Arizona Equals Conversation, that's exactly what I want to highlight about the queer individuals I interview on the podcast. 00;00;53;05 - 00;01;21;07 Jeanne Today on the show, I speak with Tin Subsin. I first met Tin at an LGBTQ+ event hosted by May Tiwamangkala of Arizona AANHPI for Equity, who I spoke with last week on the podcast. You can find that interview and our entire archive at EqualityArizona.org/Stories, or you can follow the show on Spotify, Apple Podcasts or the podcast player of your choice. 00;01;22;04 - 00;01;54;11 Jeanne Today's guest on the podcast, Tin is a student, a political activist and a producer on her own podcast through ASU titled Chasing Cherry Blossoms. With many of my guests, discussing the pandemic, I found it to be a particularly transformative time in their lives, not just because of the societal upheaval, but often for coincidental or almost coincidental reasons like moving, graduating, coming out, finding a job and more. 00;01;54;11 - 00;02;21;04 Jeanne Listening to Tin, I felt that her experience trying to balance both her Asian-American and queer identities reached something of a breaking point during the pandemic. But I think that you should hear about it in her own words. So I'll let her introduce herself and get the podcast started. 00;02;26;17 - 00;02;40;08 Tin Hello everyone. My name is Tin Subsin. I am a youth engagement fellow at the Arizona AANHPI for Equity, and I'm also a civic leader for 18byVote. 00;02;40;08 - 00;02;49;13 Jeanne So you were telling me actually that you were running a podcast affiliated with ASU just earlier this year. Right? Can you tell me a little bit about that? 00;02;49;18 - 00;03;18;07 Tin Yeah. So it's an ASU affiliated podcast that I helped create. So I was a junior producer with my advisor, Professor Reina Higashitani. And basically what we did was we talked to various Japanese-American community leaders and people who were really involved with the community as a whole. So that was in downtown L.A. and that was also in Arizona, kind of like local, too. 00;03;18;25 - 00;03;26;25 Tin And we highlighted Japanese-American women specifically and told their stories and talked about like the Asian-American journey. So that was really fun. 00;03;26;26 - 00;03;35;04 Jeanne Oh, yeah, that's amazing. And what was your process for reaching out to guests, especially locally? When you say, kind of, local, what do you mean by local? 00;03;35;17 - 00;03;58;11 Tin Yeah, so we talked to just a few people. Well, specifically, my professor was the one that did a lot of the outreach. So that was like really helpful. And, but I want to kind of be that bridge between like the Japanese-American community and like people who are outside the Japanese-American community, because I'm not Japanese-American myself, so I'm like half white, half Thai. 00;03;58;11 - 00;04;25;00 Tin But that would, I think one of the most memorable guests that I had was Cindi Kishiyama-Harbottle from the, she's the vice president of the JACL, the Japanese-American Citizens League, the Arizona chapter. Yeah. So it was really fun talking to her and talking about, because we had very similar kind of like — being Asian-American in Arizona is like a very unique experience, but we kind of had similar kind of journeys and stories. 00;04;25;11 - 00;04;36;15 Tin So that's what I was kind of, with the local. And then we also talked to, you know, various people like we talked to some professors at ASU. And we also, I just there's such a long list. I can't remember everything. 00;04;36;15 - 00;04;37;15 Jeanne That's exciting. 00;04;37;15 - 00;04;40;11 Tin But every guest was important. I'm just going to put that out there. 00;04;40;11 - 00;04;42;07 Jeanne How long did the podcast run for? 00;04;42;14 - 00;05;01;15 Tin Right. So I was hired in February and it ran up until May, and right now it's still a work in progress, so it's kind of going through the editing process and everything like that. But I was, a lot of people think it was like a project, like a school project, but I was actually like hired on and specifically — 00;05;01;23 - 00;05;18;03 Tin And then I also had like a co-junior producer who, we are both not like film students or anything like that, or podcast students, I guess. So we weren't part of that department. So we both have very different like, I guess career aspects, but we still wanted to do this podcast. 00;05;18;07 - 00;05;24;20 Jeanne What is your focus then, if it's not that kind of media production? What are you working on? 00;05;24;26 - 00;05;46;24 Tin Right, so, that's actually a very interesting question because I feel like most, like most college students, I'm still kind of up in the air. But what I specifically want to do, because my major is medical microbiology, believe it or not. Jeanne Oh, wow, that's great. Tin Yeah, I know when I tell people that, because we even talked to a few film students in LA and they're like, Oh, so what are you, like audio engineering majors? 00;05;46;24 - 00;05;57;10 Tin No, medical microbiology. But I basically want to hopefully go into the genetic counseling field. I don't know if you know too much about that. 00;05;57;17 - 00;05;58;25 Jeanne Can you tell me a little bit about it? 00;05;58;25 - 00;06;08;29 Tin Yeah. So genetic counseling is basically it could be a variety of things. It's kind of like med school in a way, because, you know, you can be in different areas or fields. 00;06;08;29 - 00;06;09;15 Jeanne Oh, I see. 00;06;09;15 - 00;06;20;24 Tin Yeah. So basically you would look at people's like family history and then also you would look for markers and well, it depends on what you're looking for, but genetic markers you will get like their DNA sequence. 00;06;21;11 - 00;06;28;24 Jeanne So they might give like a blood sample. And then you analyze their DNA and you look at maybe like a family tree. Tin Yeah. Jeanne And then where do you go from there? 00;06;28;24 - 00;06;47;18 Tin Yeah. So it depends on like like you said what you want to do. But specifically what I want to do is work with like rare genetic diseases. So you would test maybe if you have someone in your family that has a rare genetic disease or just a genetic disease in general, you would see how probable it is for you to have that. 00;06;48;01 - 00;06;59;03 Tin And also, there's other areas where there's like cancer genetics. So you can see how probable it is to have cancer. And so it's very, a taxing job as well, just like emotionally. 00;06;59;15 - 00;07;05;12 Jeanne I can imagine. And I can imagine sometimes people might not want to know. 00;07;05;12 - 00;07;23;09 Tin Exactly, so that is — I'm glad you brought that up because that's like one of the biggest debates. Right. So would you tell someone that they have a genetic disease or genetic disorder that's going to alter their life if even if there's a good probability of it, because then they have to change their lifestyle completely, right? Or would you just, like, let them know and then if it happens, it happens, right? 00;07;23;09 - 00;07;36;21 Tin So it's just very, very it's kind of like a new field too. So there's a lot of debate on like bioethics. I just took a bioethics class that was just kind of like talking about genetic counseling. I was like, Oh my gosh, yeah, that's what I want to do. 00;07;36;21 - 00;07;41;04 Jeanne Oh, that's that's a great entry point through ethics. Into the field. 00;07;41;04 - 00;07;59;05 Tin Exactly. So it was just very you know, it's something that — because I originally was pre-med, so that was kind of the kind of the route for a long time. But then I realized I wanted to I still want that patient contact because before that I wanted to get my Ph.D. so it just keeps changing. 00;07;59;05 - 00;08;02;01 Jeanne So that's the classic college experience. I think. 00;08;02;01 - 00;08;19;28 Tin Yeah, honestly, I'm a junior right now, so it's like, okay, I kind of need to figure out what I'm doing, but I still have a little bit of time.But that's like, kind of like, an in-between, in between like medicine and just kind of like the more analytical side of like research and stuff like that. 00;08;19;28 - 00;08;34;08 Jeanne Yeah, and I like that. It's actually still very personal and relational, um, which is similar to that podcast. I want to back up for a second. Is that podcast something people can listen to now, or is it something that's going to co

09/07/2022

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41 min
10/05/2022

Arizona Equals Brother Lee

On today’s episode of the Arizona Equals Conversation, Jeanne talks with Brother Lee Hughes about classics degrees, working in tech, and living life under a rule. For Jeanne, that’s a series of notebooks and sticky notes; for Brother Lee, a married gay man in a religious order, there’s a little bit more to it. The conversation also explores the long history of the church and the healing that is still only beginning to begin. Links & Show Notes * Bear (gay culture) * Bishop Gene Robinson * Feast of the Nativity of Mary * Anglican Order of Preachers * The Doctrine of Discovery * Bartolomé de las Casas Full Episode Transcript 00;00;00;28 - 00;00;31;14 Jeanne From Equality Arizona, you’re listening to the Arizona Equals Conversation. I'm Jeanne Woodbury. Each week on the show, I talk with an LGBTQ+ person living in Arizona about their path through a network of relationships. Sometimes I worry that that's kind of a heady concept. I mostly worry about that when I'm describing the show to potential guests. And as an aside, anyone listening to this who's an LGBTQ person in Arizona is a potential guest. 00;00;31;15 - 00;01;09;03 Jeanne You can sign up at EqualityArizona.org/Stories. But more to the point, I really believe that what defines us as people and what really grounds our stories isn't our internal journey, but how we connect to all the people around us. Today on the show, I talk with Brother Lee Hughes. And I think his story and the approach to life that he takes, which is really rooted in community responsibility, is something that exemplifies the whole purpose of this podcast. 00;01;10;03 - 00;01;34;12 Jeanne He's also the first person I've gotten to talk to on the show about studying Latin, which — fair warning going in. But I was excited. Before we get started, it's important to note that today is October 5th. That's just one week before early voting begins in Arizona. If you're not registered to vote yet, make sure to register to vote today. 00;01;34;27 - 00;02;02;17 Jeanne Just visit EQAZ.vote to get registered. And since it's the beginning of the month, we also have a lot of great events that I want to invite you to. You can check all of those out at EqualityArizona.org/events. One in particular that I'd like to highlight is our very first Queer People Fit Yoga event. That's scheduled for October 11th at Upward Light Yoga in Mesa. 00;02;02;24 - 00;02;19;10 Jeanne I hope to see you there. And now let's get into the interview. 00;02;24;14 - 00;02;49;25 Brother Lee I'm Brother Lee Hughes with the Anglican Order of Preachers, also known as the Dominicans. We are an order in the Episcopal Church, much like the Roman Catholic Dominicans. I am a married man, and my husband and I have been together for 28 years. And I am also a retired I.T. professional specializing in telecommunications. 00;02;50;09 - 00;02;52;16 Jeanne Wonderful. Thanks for being on the podcast today. 00;02;52;27 - 00;02;54;12 Brother Lee Thank you. Good to be here. 00;02;55;02 - 00;03;06;24 Jeanne Well, actually, I'm curious. You were saying you went to get a booster the other day. Is this with the new — this is just for my own curiosity — Is that with the new reformulated vaccine? 00;03;06;24 - 00;03;11;09 Brother Lee No, it was still the regular BioNTech Pfizer shot. 00;03;11;10 - 00;03;11;20 Jeanne Okay. 00;03;12;00 - 00;03;29;25 Brother Lee So I've now got four of those. I was supposed to get my fourth booster in April, but we had a very small, we thought controlled gathering at Easter at our house. And come to find out, one of the people actually had been exposed at a previous gathering. 00;03;29;26 - 00;03;30;17 Jeanne Oh, gosh. 00;03;30;18 - 00;03;38;24 Brother Lee At a Passover dinner a few days before. And so she communicated it to my partner and then he communicated it a week later to me. 00;03;39;17 - 00;03;40;15 Jeanne Ah, gosh. 00;03;40;26 - 00;03;42;24 Brother Lee So we had to put off the boosters for awhile. 00;03;43;05 - 00;03;43;21 Jeanne Yeah. 00;03;44;13 - 00;03;56;17 Brother Lee Although it was really it does say a lot for the vaccines. He's in a very high risk group. Mm hmm. And so he was laid out for a bit, but nothing horrible. 00;03;56;23 - 00;03;57;11 Jeanne Oh, good, good. 00;03;57;27 - 00;04;05;18 Brother Lee He did the anti-viral therapy as well. And for me, it was like a mild cold. It was more annoyance than anything. 00;04;05;21 - 00;04;17;23 Jeanne Ah, yeah. I didn't get COVID until after my third shot, and it was super mild, just lethargy and headaches and all of that. 00;04;17;23 - 00;04;22;22 Brother Lee If I had lethargy, it was matched by the lethargy I usually have from overwork. So. 00;04;23;15 - 00;04;31;24 Jeanne Yeah. Well, now I'm curious. You mentioned having a small gathering on Easter and a different gathering that was on Passover. 00;04;32;02 - 00;04;47;25 Brother Lee Well, it wasn't my gathering. The family we had over is a multi-faith family, and so they're Episcopalian, but his relations are also Jewish. 00;04;48;07 - 00;04;49;04 Jeanne Oh, okay. Wonderful. 00;04;49;05 - 00;05;05;21 Brother Lee So they went over for Passover, was fairly close to Easter this year. And so they went over and apparently, even though they were careful because the lady of the family had just finished a round of chemo, and so they were being very careful. 00;05;06;00 - 00;05;06;24 Jeanne Oh gosh. 00;05;07;01 - 00;05;32;06 Brother Lee But apparently a few of the relatives had not been careful and being in a very precarious position, she picked it up and she was asymptomatic when she came over to our house. And then we got a call from their daughter, who was very good friends of ours. And she said, by the way, Mom's got COVID. She tested positive this morning and this was like on Monday, so the day after. 00;05;32;06 - 00;05;54;26 Brother Lee And it's like, wow, she didn't look like she had a single symptom yesterday. Okay, so Tuesday, Hugh fell victim to it. And then a week later I did because I was taking care of them. I was observing precautions. But, you know, after a while, somebody slips up somewhere. 00;05;54;27 - 00;06;03;03 Jeanne It's almost inevitable at that level. How did the pandemic affect your work? 00;06;04;01 - 00;06;28;13 Brother Lee Well, um, really interesting. I retired from my job on May the 31st this year. Okay. So prior to that, I had been going I've been doing a hybridized work for a few years before the pandemic hit. I would work from home two days and work in the office three. And so when the lockdowns happened, I moved to working at home four or five days a week. 00;06;28;13 - 00;06;51;08 Brother Lee And this was for CVS Health. And they were a little bit more sensitive to the, to COVID 19 contagion than a lot of other companies are. So we had an extended work at home, period, for those of us who had to. Store personnel, unfortunately, could not get around that; warehouse personnel, they couldn't do that because they were part of the supply chain. 00;06;51;09 - 00;07;15;00 Brother Lee But for those of us who dealt mostly with the software and the services, like I was in, I was in telecommunications, we were able to work from home. The only, I only had to come into the office a few times and that was basically to dropkick a couple of pieces of equipment that no longer would respond remotely. 00;07;15;01 - 00;07;15;14 Jeanne Yeah. 00;07;15;27 - 00;07;36;05 Jeanne Oh, yeah. I think that's a nice thing — I know some other people who already were in that kind of hybrid work situation where they could work from home a lot. And so it was a really easy transition. And I think for people who have family that are in higher risk categories, that was a really fortuitous circumstance. 00;07;36;05 - 00;08;10;28 Brother Lee Yeah. My husband's 12 years older than I am. Okay. I'm 55 now. He's 67. So he was 64, going on 65 when the pandemic broke out. And of course, we're bears. We're not exactly svelte people. And so that puts us in a risk category all our own. Both have high blood pressure. He has type two diabetes and a couple of immune issues with psoriasis and severe allergies and stuff like that. 00;08;11;06 - 00;08;20;08 Brother Lee So he was already like, for the first part of the lockdown, I wouldn't even let him out of the house. I wouldn't let him go near the door. I wouldn't let him take the grocery delivery. 00;08;21;00 - 00;08;28;08 Jeanne It was a very, very, very serious risk at that point in time, especially since we didn't even know the right ways to protect ourselves. 00;08;29;13 - 00;08;40;13 Brother Lee Exactly. So I made sure that everything came in went on to a cart. It got wheeled to the kitchen. Everything got washed, including cardboard boxes. 00;08;41;17 - 00;08;47;20 Jeanne Yeah, that was such an interesting moment. Just thought we had to sanitize everything. 00;08;47;23 - 00;09;03;17 Brother Lee Everything. And of course, we didn't get COVID until we let our guard down. Like, two years later. And fortunately, by that time, therapies were available to make sure that it didn't carry us off. 00;09;04;01 - 00;09;06;24 Jeanne Yeah, I'm glad. How did you two meet? 00;09;07;24 - 00;09;13;16 Brother Lee Hugh and I met in Cincinnati many years ago. In 1994. 00;09;13;17 - 00;09;14;00 Jeanne Oh, cool. 00;09;14;13 - 00;09;16;08 Brother Lee We met at a bear potluck. 00;09;16;25 - 00;09;17;22 Jeanne Oh, that's so fun. 00;09;17;23 - 00;09;31;08 Brother Lee And he had been a founding member of the bear group in Cincinnati. And I had just stumbled on the bear community because I had just come out of the closet six weeks previously. 00;09;31;09 - 00;09;32;05 Jeanne Oh, wow. 00;09;33;10 - 00;09;52;04 Brother Lee So I really didn't have the chance to form any serious relationships or anything like that. And I went to this person's house and back then everything was done by voice mail and phone chains and everything else. 00;09;52;08 - 00;09;52;16 Jeanne Right! 00;09;52;22 - 00;0

10/05/2022

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51 min
03/30/2022

SB 1138 and SB 1165 Signed into Law

Today Governor Ducey signed SB 1165 and SB 1138 into law. Like leaders around the country, the Governor has forgotten that he has a duty to govern for all Arizonans. These draconian laws will harm transgender children, adults, and their families. These harmful laws will make it harder for all to live in the state of Arizona — if our elected leaders allow discrimination to become the law of the land, we cannot claim to be a place where all people are welcome and valued. Equality Arizona, together with the business community, the LGBTQ+ community, the faith community, and all Arizonans who believe in the dignity of all human beings, are united in our resolve to not only challenge and repeal these bills, but also to win full equality for LGBTQ+ Arizonans. To the trans youth of Arizona, to trans adults, to the families and loved ones of trans youth and adults: your life is valuable beyond measure. We see you, we love you, and we work daily alongside you and for you to create a more just Arizona. Today is a setback, but it is not the end. When fear and malice drive policy decisions, we see destructive laws tear our communities apart, but these terrified politicians can never stop the change that is already so clear in Arizona and our nation. Their cowardice only reveals our strength and the power of those who are showing up in solidarity with trans Arizonans. Trans people are everywhere and we will continue to make the world see us, hear us, and we will cede no ground on our right to be here. What You Can Do Today First, know that your community is here for you. Take time to make sure the trans people, and especially the trans kids in your life know that they are loved and supported. Collective action means taking care of each other, especially in times like these. This is where true, transformative change begins. If you are wondering what these bills will mean for your family, reach out to us. Equality Arizona is here for you, and will continue to fight until we have full equality for all Arizonans. With an election just around the corner, it’s going to take all of us working together to build the future we deserve. Sign up to volunteer today to get connected to the movement. To everyone who made phone calls this week, and to the thousands of you who sent your letters to the Governor, thank you. What These Bills Mean, and Why This Is Happening Now In his statement today, Governor Ducey claimed that these bills are “common sense,” but there’s nothing common sense about a state law targeting a group of kids fewer in number than the legislators who voted for it. It’s no accident that Governor Ducey, in his praise of SB 1138 – a bill which would restrict gender-affirming care for youth – described it as a measure to protect “the ability of [an] individual to become a biological parent later in life.” But we know that protecting the lives of trans young people today is what makes life possible now and in the future. Anti-trans legislation is nothing more than a moral panic sweeping the nation that has nothing to do with what is right for Arizona. It is the coordinated campaign of a specific group of individuals and organizations, and the destructive product of their deep-seated anxiety over the pluralism that defines what is best about Arizona and our nation. The passage of SB 1138 and SB 1165 is a blemish on our state, but it does not reflect the beliefs or values of a majority of Arizonans of any community. The fight will be difficult, but decency and equality will win out. This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit equalityarizona.substack.com

03/30/2022

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5 min
01/23/2023

Queer Community in Action at the Capitol

Between committee hearings and a community demonstration against anti-LGBTQ+ legislation, it’s been a busy week at the Capitol for Arizona’s queer community. We’ve got a lot more information about all of it below the fold, but what stood out most was the strength of our voices and the beauty of our stories. If you want to be part of it, sign up to be a volunteer on our website! Or keep reading to learn more about what we’re doing in the three areas of our work: * Civic Advocacy * Political Power * Media & Events Civic Advocacy There’s just one week left for new legislation to be introduced in the state Senate, so we could see hundreds of new bills over the next few days. We’ll be keeping a close eye on those, and we’ll report next week on any new legislation that could affect the LGBTQ+ community in Arizona. We’ve seen over half a dozen anti-LGBTQ+ bills so far, and two of those have already passed through committee hearings — SB 1001, which bans teachers from respecting a student’s chosen name and pronouns without written parental permission, and SB 1005, which threatens schools with costly lawsuits that could be used to discourage support for LGBTQ+ students. The next big step for both bills would be a full vote on the Senate floor, so now is the time to call your state senator to encourage them to vote no on SB 1001 and SB 1005. Fortunately, Katie Hobbs’s chief of staff has publicly messaged that any attacks on trans kids would be DOA if they make it to the Governor’s desk. With over 700 bills already introduced, there’s a lot more going on at the legislature than pointless and destructive attacks on the queer community. Last week, we covered three pro-LGBTQ+ bills, and this week we want to share a few great pieces of legislation that would advance some of our policy priorities. Bills Supporting Youth Rights House Bill 2370 Sponsored by Representative Sun, HB 2370 would ensure minors have the right to consent to medical care and prescriptions to prevent sexually transmitted infections. House Concurrent Resolution 2004 Sponsored by Representative Gress, HCR 2004 proposes an amendment to the Arizona Constitution that would lower the minimum age requirement for state legislators from 25 to 18. If passed by the legislature, it would be sent to the ballot in 2024. Senate Bill 1062 Sponsored by Senator Shope, SB 1062 would give unhoused 16- and 17-year-old youth the right to consent to shelter, housing, and related services. Bills Addressing The Housing Crisis House Bill 2136 Sponsored by Representative Salman, HB 2136 would require cities and counties to provide 24-hour access to clean bathrooms and drinking water for unhoused people. House Bill 2281 Sponsored by Representative Cano, HB 2281 would dedicate up to $10 million in new funding for housing and rental services to support homeless youth and families. House Bill 2363 Sponsored by Representative Sun, HB 2363 would protect tenants from eviction after 12 months, except for failure to pay rent or a material breach of the lease agreement. The bill includes an exception for a landlord who moves an immediate family member into the property or removes the property from the market altogether. Political Power On Sunday, we joined with community organizers at the Arizona Capitol to protest restrictions on bodily autonomy and the three proposed bans on drag performances. The turnout was incredible! If you weren’t able to make it out, check out this video from AZ Central to catch a few snippets of some of the speakers and some great views of the crowd. And if you met us for the first time at the protest, hi! Media & Events Tonight! Banned Book Club 6:30 pm - 8:00 pm January 23, 2023 | register As book bans sweep the nation, one great way to push back is to read! Our banned book for the month of January is Melissa, by Alex Gino, about a young girl finding the courage and support to express her identity. Join us tonight at Brick Road coffee to discuss the book and the backlash with our book club host Vanessa Marie! Wednesday: Drag Culture, Then and Now, a Panel Discussion 6:30 pm - 7:30 pm January 25, 2023 | register Join us on January 25 at the Tempe Public Library for our first installment of Ask Smart People Smart Questions. We’ll talk with a panel of experts about the history of drag, the shape of drag culture in Arizona, and how drag performers are responding to the current moment of increased harassment and violence. Queer People Fit: Walking / Running 5:30 pm - 8:00 pm January 26, 2023 | register Queer People Fit running events are hosted in partnership with FrontRunners & FrontWalkers Phoenix, a running and walking club for the LGBT+ community and allies. We'll gather together at Tempe Town Lake at 5:30 PM and break out in running and walking groups after a 10 to 15 minute introduction. Stick around after the event to get some dinner with the group! This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit equalityarizona.substack.com

01/23/2023

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7 min
03/08/2022

You’re Invited! Upcoming Community Events from Equality Arizona

LGBTQ+ Community Care Take our community needs survey Across the country, LGBTQ+ rights are under attack. From censorship of our history and identities, to mean-spirited bans to keep trans kids from playing sports, to bans on gender-affirming care that threaten to separate families and tear communities apart. In Arizona, we’re dealing with our own versions of all of these provocations. We’ve already won some victories, and we’ll win more. At Equality Arizona, we’re dedicated to the well-being of Arizona’s LGBTQ+ communities, and from fighting anti-LGBTQ+ bills to championing statewide non-discrimination protections, we’re hard at work to build a better future for all of us. That effort needs you. Visit our website today to take our LGBTQ+ community needs survey. Telling Your Story 6:00 pm March 15, 2022 | register Equality Arizona is developing an LGBTQ+ Story Bank to celebrate the stories of Arizona’s LGBTQ+ communities and communicate the realities of our lives to Arizona’s leaders and decision-makers. We believe that your story has power, and we want to hear it! Share your story online today, or join us for an evening of storytelling on Tuesday, March 15 at 6:00 PM to build your storytelling skills and to share your story with the LGBTQ+ Story Bank. Queer Poetry Salon 1:00 pm - 7:30 pm March 19, 2022 | register The Equality Arizona Foundation and the Virginia G. Piper Center for Creative Writing at Arizona State University are partnering for quarterly readings with a diverse, world-class cast of queer poets. Over the past three years, the Queer Poetry Salon has been dedicated to strengthening and growing queer culture in Arizona by bringing the world's great LGBTQIA2s+ poets to our communities. This year the Queer Poetry Salon will offer free creative writing workshops presented by our featured poets! While this event is free and open to the public, you must register through Eventbrite to receive the Zoom link and to RSVP for the community building workshops. Following both workshops, you’ll have a chance to read your own work as part of an open mic activity! Schedule of activities: * 1:00 - 2:30 PM online writing workshop led by the Queer Poetry Salon's featured poet, Vidhu Aggarwal * 3:00 - 4:30 PM online writing workshop led by the Queer Poetry Salon's featured poet, Julián Delacruz * 6:00 - 6:30 PM online open mic featuring 4 workshop participants * 6:30 - 7:30 PM featured readings from Vidhu Aggarwal and Julián Delacruz About our featured poets: Born in Ranchi, India, Vidhu Aggarwal grew up in the Southern U.S., primarily in Louisiana and Texas. Her multi-media works in video, poetry, and scholarship are oriented around Bollywood spectacle, carnival, and science fiction. Her poems appeared in the top 25 of 2016 in Boston Review. Her collection of poems The Trouble with Humpdori (2016) received the Editor's Choice Prize from The (Great) Indian Poetry Collective, was a handpicked selection with Small Press Distribution, and was selected by Sundress Publications as one of the best books of 2016. Her work has appeared or is forthcoming in Black Warrior Review, Poetry, Leonardo, Entropy, Chicago Quarterly Review, Juked, [PANK], Pedestal, Sugar House Review, INK BRICK, Arc, Counter-Desecration, among others. A Kundiman fellow, she has worked with John Sims Projects on “The 13 Flag Funerals” in Florida, and with artist Bishakh Som on “Lady Humpadori,” a poetry/comic book collaboration. Her chapbook, Avatara, is out with Portable Press @ Yo-Yo Labs. Her latest book Daughter Isotope is available for pre-order at Operating System. She teaches poetry and postcolonial/transnational studies at Rollins College in Winter Park, Florida. Julián Delacruz is a third year M.F.A Candidate at Arizona State University. He is a June Jordan Teaching Fellow under ASU’s new poetry program, Poetry for the People, a workshop focused on poetry as a medium for telling the truth and building beloved community. He is also the co-host of Equality Arizona’s Queer Poetry Salon, the largest queer reading series in the southwest. He has had the pleasure to feature such esteemed poets as CA Conrad, Ariana Reines, Richard Siken, Eduardo Corral, and Tommy Pico, alongside queer indie poets across many identities. Delacruz was awarded the 2020 Mabelle A. Lyon award in poetry, and a Glendon & Kathryn Swarthout Award in writing at Arizona State. He lives and writes in Tempe, AZ. Yoga for Organizers 7:30 am every Wednesday | register Equality Arizona is committed to the well-being and long-term resilience of Arizona’s community organizers. Every Wednesday morning, we start the day with a yoga class led by our organizing manager (and certified yoga instructor) tanner menard. We know that you’re a passionate advocate who wants to make a difference for your community – we can see just how deeply you care. So join us each week to practice self care and to network with other organizers from across the state. For our full calendar of events, visit equalityarizona.org/events. This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit equalityarizona.substack.com

03/08/2022

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5 min
03/14/2023

TransContinental Run

We’re starting this week’s newsletter with a message from Cal Dobbs, a transgender ultramarathoner who will be joining us at our next Queer People Fit event on March 23! He's running across the country to draw attention to the work organizations like us are doing in states that have been particularly targeted by anti-LGBTQ+ legislation, and he’s raising funds along the way to support community advocacy! Here's a message from Cal: My name is Cal (he/they) and I am a queer transgender ultramarathoner and long-distance hiker. This spring I will start my transcontinental run across America from California to Florida to fight for inclusion of transgender people in sports and access to gender affirming healthcare. Learn more about the run on my website! This year is the worst year for anti-transgender legislation in America with over 41 states introducing 400+ anti-trans bills. It's time to show up for the trans and queer people most affected by these proposed policies. Visit Equality Arizona's guide to learn more about all of the anti-LGBTQ+ bills proposed in Arizona. Equality Arizona is a non-profit organization dedicated to making sure LGBTQ+ people in Arizona have the opportunity, capacity, and confidence to make change as advocates, voters, and civic leaders. They are committed to protecting the rights and freedoms of trans people in Arizona. Please give generously to support their work. Meet Cal and enjoy a springtime walk at Tempe Town Lake at our next Queer People Fit event on March 23. Queer People Fit: Walking / Running 5:30 pm - 8:00 pm March 23, 2023 | register Queer People Fit running events are hosted in partnership with FrontRunners & FrontWalkers Phoenix, a running and walking club for the LGBT+ community and allies. We'll gather together at Tempe Town Lake at 5:30 PM and break out in running and walking groups after a 10 to 15 minute introduction. Civic Advocacy Action Alert: SB 1005 On Wednesday, the House Judiciary Committee will vote on SB 1005, a bill that would allow anti-LGBTQ+ parents to impose their beliefs on schools with the threat of costly lawsuits. By allowing parents to impose financial penalties on schools for any perceived violation of their parental rights, SB 1005 weaponizes our court system against schools, even when the courts decide there hasn't been a violation of parental rights. You can sign in on RTS to put your opinion on the public record, and you can show up on Wednesday to show your support for the LGBTQ+ community. Civic Advocacy Jam 12:30 pm - 2:00 pm March 18, 2023 | register Join us on March 18 for another Civic Advocacy Jam! We’ll be approaching the final deadline for bills to get committee hearings, so the following week will be one of the busiest of the session. We’ll use our time in this meeting to strategize for committee meetings and to practice effective testimony. Can’t be there in person? Join through our Discord livestream instead! Political Power Today is Election Day in Phoenix! If you are a voter in city council district 6 or 8, don’t forget to cast your ballot in the runoffs. The city’s website has a guide to help you locate a voting center, and you can learn more about your rights as a voter on our voter guide. Media & Events Banned Book Club 6:30 pm - 8:00 pm March 20, 2023 | register As book bans sweep the nation, one great way to push back is to read! Our banned book for the month of March is Detransition, Baby, by Torrey Peters, a novel about family, parenting, and trans community. Join us at Brick Road coffee on March 20 to discuss the book with our book club host Vanessa Marie! Ask Smart People Smart Questions: Incarceration 6:30 pm - 7:30 pm March 22, 2023 | register Join us on March 22 for our next installment of Ask Smart People Smart Questions. We’ll talk with a panel of people with real insight into Arizona’s criminal justice system about the experiences of LGBTQ+ people in our courts, jails, and prisons. The LGBTQ+ community is disproportionately incarcerated, and LGBTQ+ individuals face discipline and solitary confinement on the basis of their identities, often as a matter of policy. This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit equalityarizona.substack.com

03/14/2023

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5 min
02/01/2023

Arizona Equals Dawn & Hayden

On today’s episode of the Arizona Equals Conversation, we talk with Dawn Shim and Hayden Nguyen, two leading members of Support Equality Arizona Schools, a student activist group based in Chandler. There’s a good chance you’ve heard about them in the news, for their protest at Chandler City Hall, the walkouts they led last Fall, or their recent demonstration at the state capitol. Here’s a statement of their mission and vision (written by Hayden): Our vision lies in the belief that we should all be treated equally, despite our race, gender, or sexuality. Our mission is to achieve this vision through a grassroots, student-led effort made up of people who are afflicted by discrimination and allies. By emphasizing student involvement, we hope to make our voices heard even as non-voters. By meeting with local officials, we seek the best way to draw attention to the issues which we view as important to us. By protesting, we can show solidarity with those who have experienced discrimination and lend an audience to those who have been impacted in our community. Through our organizing, we hope to turn hate and apathy into action. Full Episode Transcript Jeanne Woodbury From Equality Arizona, you're listening to the Arizona Equals Conversation, an ongoing interview series featuring the stories of queer people living in Arizona. I'm your host, Jeanne Woodbury. In this week's episode, I got to talk with Dawn and Hayden, two students from the East Valley who are leading members of a group called Support Equality Arizona Schools. Now, like I almost always do, I forgot to ask them to introduce themselves until we had our entire conversation. So to make it easier to keep track, I'm going to play a short clip right now of each of them introducing themselves. Dawn Shim Okay, cool. Hi, my name is Dawn. I'm 17. I use they/she pronouns and I'm with Support Equality Arizona Schools. Hayden Nguyen Hi, my name is Hayden. I'm also 17. I use he/him pronouns and I'm with Support Equality Arizona Schools. Jeanne Woodbury There's a good chance you've heard about their group in the news because they're doing really amazing work. But one of the problems for student organizers is that when you do great work, people want to turn you into a figurehead at best, and as they say later, a sock puppet at worst. So I was really excited for the opportunity to sit down with them and talk not just about the work they're doing, but how they got into the work and how they think about the work. This is one of the most fun conversations I've had, coming from my own personal experience, and just getting to listen to both of these amazing people talk. So I'm just going to roll the tape and I hope you enjoy the interview. Thanks for listening. (beep) (typing) (upbeat music) Jeanne Woodbury Well, I really like the business cards. I think you must've given me one at the Christmas party. Dawn Shim Yeah, I think so. Jeanne Woodbury Yeah, but it's a fun design. Hayden Nguyen Thank you, I made them. Dawn Shim Yeah. Jeanne Woodbury Oh cool, so you do design work? Hayden Nguyen That's a, I would refrain from saying that just 'cause I'm solely on Canva. Dawn Shim Condemned to design. Hayden Nguyen I'm on Canva, I'm not on any real design software. Jeanne Woodbury Well, I mean, Canva's real design software, but I know what you mean. Hayden Nguyen Yeah. Jeanne Woodbury I like the idea of a design curse. It's like your curse to do design. Hayden Nguyen Yeah, that's exactly what activism is. Dawn Shim Like the design basement, like you're confined in a basement and you can only do design. Jeanne Woodbury Yeah. Yeah, online activism is just — Hayden Nguyen Instagram graphics. Jeanne Woodbury — being thrown into a basement and forced to make Canva designs. Dawn Shim And then sometimes it gets worse and you like, have to go into TikTok. It's like, everything just like keeps getting worse. Jeanne Woodbury Do you, are you on TikTok? Like, do you do Support Equals Arizona Schools stuff? Dawn Shim We should be. We were for a period of time. Hayden Nguyen We made five reels. Jeanne Woodbury Okay. Hayden Nguyen Five reels total. Jeanne Woodbury And did they perform well? 'Cause that's the thing I really — it feels like a lottery. Hayden Nguyen It is a lottery. It's okay, with the most recent one. Dawn Shim We posted a reel just yesterday and we got like, how much did we get? Hayden Nguyen We got a lot of engagement. We got about 1600 views, but like — Dawn Shim We did? Hayden Nguyen Yeah, but… Dawn Shim That's huge. Hayden Nguyen But that doesn't like translate to likes. Dawn Shim Oh yeah. Jeanne Woodbury Right. Hayden Nguyen It's like different. Jeanne Woodbury Do you feel like getting the views though connects to people at least? Hayden Nguyen Yeah, I think so. I think the way that the algorithm works, Reels are just like more advertised, so more people see it. Jeanne Woodbury Yeah. Dawn Shim They're trying to push it because of like TikTok’s commercial success and whatnot. Jeanne Woodbury Yeah, I think they definitely amplify Reels on Instagram for that reason. Hayden Nguyen Yeah, we always get more impression, not as much like shares, likes, all that, like as opposed to what… Jeanne Woodbury I found if you like have a multi-image video post and you have a mix of photos and videos, I think they amplify that more. Dawn Shim Oh do they? Hayden Nguyen I gotta write that down. Jeanne Woodbury But it's a whole thing. I don't know, chasing the social media algorithm… Hayden Nguyen It’s kind of like — Jeanne Woodbury …sucks. Dawn Shim Yeah. Jeanne Woodbury Like, I feel like I've been doing that in one way or another for like 10 years. Dawn Shim Oh my God. Jeanne Woodbury And it's just — Hayden Nguyen And I need to not be sucked into that. Jeanne Woodbury It's not really worth it. Hayden Nguyen I imagine, yeah. Jeanne Woodbury It's not really worth it. But I guess I kind of started doing that when I was like a student activist. And I don't know, like 2009, 2010, social media felt fun and new and exciting. Dawn Shim Oh yeah. Jeanne Woodbury And now social media is just like — Dawn Shim It's a curse. Jeanne Woodbury — You have to be there. It's the curse of the activism basement. Hayden Nguyen Right, the activism basement. Yeah, the walls, the project walls. And we're like, we're perpetually sitting there. Jeanne Woodbury Yeah. Hayden Nguyen That's the thing. I mean, that's like, I try to come out with a post every couple of days, but it's like, sometimes you just don't got anything to say. Dawn Shim Oh, and I feel so bad 'cause I'm like, very inept at Canva. Like I just cannot do it. Hayden Nguyen Yeah, I'm grinding it out. Jeanne Woodbury What do you post for? I think that's a big question I've been wondering. I think people mostly assume, and they assumed the same thing when I was a student, is that young people are tech savvy and they're making everything happen online. I don't think that was true for me and I don't know that that's true for you either. Hayden Nguyen I think what we post for is a few things. I feel like we post for events, stuff like that. I recently did an infographic for the first time, which was like kind of interesting. But other than that, we do just post photos of like, us at events, which I think is like, I don't know if that makes us more of like a personable… Dawn Shim I think older people like to see that. It's like, oh, look at the kids. Hayden Nguyen Look at the kids. Dawn Shim They're doing things. They're doing the work. And they love that. I think like the other way that that translates is like, you know, Twitter, where it's like kids are coming out with like fun, snappy responses to weird, creepy bigots. Jeanne Woodbury Oh right, yeah. Dawn Shim People love that. Jeanne Woodbury Like the Greta Thunberg thing with Andrew Tate. Hayden Nguyen That's awesome by the way. Jeanne Woodbury That was so fun. I've got to include a link for that in the show notes for people who have no idea the words we just said. Dawn Shim I think also like, it was like an Arizona thing. Like some Arizona Republican posted something and then one of the Maricopa Dems just posted, "F**k off." That was funny. Hayden Nguyen Yeah, yeah. Dawn Shim I don't think they were like authorized to do that, but it was still very funny. It went around in all of our social circles and we were like, "Look at them!" Hayden Nguyen Because now we're at the point in the social media lifespan where we're not just ironic, I think we're post-ironic. Dawn Shim (chuckles) post-ironic. Hayden Nguyen Where you’re just trying to be like a brand and a person at the same time and you have to balance those two things or else you're too weird or you're too personable. Dawn Shim Yeah, we mix it up sometimes. We do memes. I think people like it. I don't know. I think… Hayden Nguyen Sometimes I let Dawn use the account. Dawn Shim (laughs) Sometimes I’m allowed. Jeanne Woodbury Well, Dawn, you said a really interesting thing about like the old people like to see the kids out doing things. Like, do you feel that that, that helps your work or do you get stuck in a trap of like “the kids will save us” mentality? Dawn Shim Well, I do think it's like helpful in a sense because these old, older, like people who have like resources and the means to do so, they like can push our like things out to people who have like financial resources and like media resources and who like generally know more about this field than we do just coming in as young people who are just genuinely interested in it. I guess the other part of it is the fact that they like see us as "oh you're so brave" like you're so like special for doing this like I never did it when I was your age is something that we hear so often and it's kind of like discouraging I think in a way because it's like you never had to do it because well I guess like they weren't really seeing these issues as head-on as

02/01/2023

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51 min
01/18/2023

Arizona Equals Bridget

We’re back from our winter break with a new episode of the Arizona Equals Conversation, featuring an interview with Bridget Sharpe, the Arizona State Director for the Human Rights Campaign. Arizona Equals is our home for the stories of queer people living in Arizona. If you’d like to share yours on a future episode of the podcast, let us know! Full Episode Transcript Jeanne From Equality Arizona, you're listening to the Arizona Equals Conversation. I'm Jeanne Woodbury. We're back with our first episode of 2023 featuring an interview with Bridget Sharpe, the Arizona State Director of the Human Rights Campaign. Bridget and I get to work pretty closely at the Capitol, and so it was fun to talk about how that world can feel when you spend a lot of time there, but also how it could be more accessible. Today is Wednesday, January 18th, and this afternoon there's a meeting of the Senate Education Committee where they'll be discussing and voting on a pair of anti-LGBTQ+ bills. We'll have more updates later on our social media feeds and in our newsletter. But if you're interested in following along live, you can join us at the Capitol, or you can watch a live stream on the Arizona Legislature's website. This was a great conversation, and so let's just get it started. Bridget So hi, my name is Bridget Sharpe. I use she/her pronouns and I work for the Human Rights Campaign as the Arizona State Director. Jeanne Very cool. We've gotten to know each other a little bit over the past year working at the Capitol, which has been fun and interesting and challenging. I think, you know, the first word I jump to is fun for some reason, which is wrong. It's really not, but for whatever reason, that's how I describe it. I get the impression that you've been working at the Capitol quite a bit longer than I have at HRC, right? or have you moved between different jobs? Bridget Yeah, so I started with HRC in November of 2019. So that is kind of when I first started. Did some volunteer work for them before, but actually prior to that, oddly enough, I worked in Scottsdale. I was a lobbyist for a trade association. Jeanne Oh, okay. Bridget And the association covered small business salons and cosmetologists, barbers, nail techs, those kinds of things. So I was in charge of all 50 states, which was a lot at the time. But you just have to be strategic and pick and choose which states we wanted to work in. Were there harmful bills in certain states? Were there good bills we could support? So it was a lot of traveling, which I kind of miss, actually, because I got to go to a lot of cool places, a lot of different capitals. Jeanne Well, did you get to go to basically every state? Bridget I wish. But I got to visit a lot of state capitals. I spent a lot of time in Austin, Texas, which the Texas legislature is a completely different topic of conversation, but their Capitol building is really beautiful, so it was kind of nice to get to hang out there. Jeanne It is really beautiful, actually. I just remembered I have been there. It's gorgeous. Bridget Yeah, I love the dome. It's so pretty. You could just sit there and relax all day, but of course, things were crazy, so that never happened. Jeanne The thing that immediately stood out to me is this idea of being based in Scottsdale and working across 50 different state legislatures, and now being based in this national organization and working in one state legislature. What's that adjustment like for you, I mean, even just from a strategy standpoint and from the relationship standpoint with lawmakers? Bridget Yeah, I mean, I feel like I'm much more impactful in one state, because focusing all my energy into Arizona, which has been my home for a long time, And I love it here. I am loving seeing all the change that's happening in Arizona. But yeah, strategically, I have such better relationships with lawmakers because I can spend more time in person or just over email, providing trainings, those kinds of things. So the relationships are much stronger versus at my old job, it was more kind of flying in as needed. And that was tough because I am very much somebody who values folks doing the work on the ground. And so it was hard to kind of come in as this person from a national org saying Jeanne Air drop in and say, this is what cosmetologists need. Bridget Exactly, right. When there's already like existing, in-state trade associations. So it's a lot of trust to build, but then when you have to move on to the next state, you have to like refocus those energies and relationships completely. So I very much prefer working in one state and feeling like I know more about what's happening here and not feeling like I need to know what every single legislature is trying to do. Jeanne It's a lot to keep up with just with one state. I feel like when I go into a meeting with anyone, but even lawmakers, if I'm going in and just asking them for something or just telling them facts, I can't tolerate that. It's like the worst feeling to just go to someone who you have no real preexisting relationship with and say, I need you to think about this this way. I don't really know who they are, I don't know what their priorities are. If I go into a meeting like that, it just sucks. Bridget I agree, yeah. Jeanne And I can't really imagine flying around between 50 states and I know we've got 90 people in our legislature and that's not big compared to Texas and some other states. So that's literally thousands of people that you might have to interact with. Bridget We also did a little work in Rhode Island where there are like 400 members of the legislature. Jeanne That's like half the population of Rhode Island. Bridget Yeah, basically like every square mile is like a new legislator in Rhode Island. But yeah, I mean, it just-- it really speaks to this work and the importance of relationships, right? Like it speaks to-- it's much easier to pick up the phone and call a legislator's assistant when you know them and you have built that rapport. and you'll likely get in more likely to than somebody who is just kind of flying in and trying to do work. So I'm with you. - Jeanne Yeah, that's right. I think part of that is why lobbyists get such a bad name and probably why a lot of people don't sit down and say, "I'm gonna be a lobbyist when I grow up." - Bridget Right. (laughs) Jeanne So how did you get into that earlier lobbying job before this? Bridget Yeah, so I graduated college in 2008, which was, you know Jeanne Not a great time to graduate. Bridget Not a great time to graduate. Originally, well, I graduated with a public relations and advertising degree. And so, you know, bad time to graduate again. And I just sort of fell into working for the Arizona Democratic Party as a field organizer in East Mesa, of all places. The party had an existing organization called the GEMDEMS, the Greater Eastern Maricopa Democrats. And so there was a year-round office there. So I kind of just swooped in and made friends with the volunteers and ran the office and all that good stuff. So I was pretty much hooked after that. I mean, I loved knowing that we were making a change, making a difference, and even just talking to people in East Mesa, that is, they're usually assumed to be more conservative. It was great to meet folks who were like, it's great to see this office here and this work that you're doing because they feel at home, you know? And so that kind of really got me in. And then over the next couple of years, I worked for SEIU, which is a labor union. I worked for-- what was it? See, I'm forgetting already. Oh, Repower America, which was Al Gore's organization. Yeah, so they were trying to pass clean energy legislation with the hope of, at the time, Senator McCain supporting it. Jeanne Was this during the Obama administration? Bridget It was, yeah. So that was all 2009. Jeanne Oh, OK. So from graduating to 2009, that's actually a lot of activity. - Bridget Exactly, right. Jeanne Yeah, I see. Bridget And I'm sure you have experienced or heard this before, but people that work on campaigns, you work for six months and then it's off to the next thing. - Jeanne Exactly. Bridget Yeah, and so I really just wanted more stability and so ended up taking a job in DC, stayed there for a year, which is longer, but then ended up coming back to Arizona and then worked for Planned Parenthood for a bit and then moved to PBA, which was the job at Scottsdale. Jeanne I see. And then that one was a longer, more stable-- Bridget Yeah, about 6 and 1/2 years, which is-- yeah. So it was nice to have stability. And the beauty industry people are so passionate about it, because it's their livelihood. It's all creative types who are just really cool and want to make a living doing-- Jeanne And mostly small businesses. Bridget Yeah, mostly small businesses. So it was great to just meet people who are trying to support their families by running their salon or even just working in the salon. It was a good experience for me, I think, to just see this side that I haven't seen before. Jeanne Right. Bridget Yeah. Jeanne Something, now that we're in this weird economic position of inflation but decent jobs numbers and people are wondering if there's a new recession coming. Bridget Right. Jeanne Something I hear people talk about a lot is how advertising spend is like a bellwether for recessions. It's like the first thing people cut is advertising spending. And so it seems like with the degree you had, that's probably the worst thing to graduate with right into the recession. Do you feel like you get to use the things that you studied and that you were excited about studying in college in this kind of work? Bridget Yeah, I think that more the public relations side. I feel like in politics and in lobbying, like we mentioned, there's a lot of relationship building and making sure that people know who you are and that they can use you as a resource. That very much is par

01/18/2023

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50 min

Equality Arizona is a non-profit organization dedicated to making sure LGBTQ+ people in Arizona have the opportunity, capacity, and confidence to make change as advocates, voters, and civic leaders. We’re asking smart people smart questions about the big issues that affect our community, adding new stories each week to the Arizona Equals Conversation about what it means to be queer in Arizona, and updating the public on what's happening in Arizona's school boards, city councils, and state legislature.

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