In this interview, Ryan & I are incredibly honored to travel to Carlton to interview Brenda Appleton.In 2015, Brenda was appointed as co-chair of the Victorian Government’s LGBTI Taskforce. In 2016 she was appointed to the Victorian Mental Health Expert Taskforce. In 2017 Brenda was inducted into the Victorian Honour Roll of Women. In 2018, Brenda …

In this episode, Lee and Ryan spend time with Amao, a proud Fa'afafine who uses the pronouns she/her/diva. Amao talks about the importance of cultural identity, her advocacy work, self-acceptance, love, shifts in language, and laying the foundations for future generations of trans and gender diverse folk. She generously shares her experiences and i…

In this episode, Lee & Ryan meet Frank at the Northcote Library on a Sunny Melbourne day. Frank speaks of their life long passion for drawing, comics, and zines, and shares the meaning of their Frankenstein tattoo and it’s relationship to Frank’s very own journey. We discuss their involvement with 3CR’s Queering the Air radio show where they interv…

Lee and Ryan head to Swinburne University's queer room to meet Jodie, who is 20 years old and uses she/her pronouns. Jodie shares her experiences growing up in Coffs Harbour, and later Wangaratta, before moving to Melbourne by herself to attend university in 2017. We talk about what it's like visiting Wangaratta since transitioning, gender euphoria…

In this episode, Lee and Ryan head to Northcote to meet Tara, who uses she/her pronouns. Among other things, Tara speaks to us about moving to Australia from a small town near Copenhagen, stencil art and rock-climbing, restrictive gender norms and undermining them, pronouns and visibility, how things have shifted since she came out 14 years ago, cl…

In today’s episode Lee & Ryan travel to Zakaria and Caroline’s beautiful home in Footscray that they share with their two cats. Zakaria and Caroline generously share their story of their love and relationship with us, which is often comedic but always tender. They speak about growing up in big families, the importance of carving out time to do nice…

In this episode, Lee and I chat with Sage (they/them) at their lovely plant-filled house in Ascot Vale, and get to meet their super sweet dalmation.Sage speaks to us about growing up in Lebanon, going to an all-girls Catholic private school in Melbourne, the pressures to conform to strict gender norms, and working for Australia's largest youth-driv…

In this episode Sasja invites Lee & Ryan to her beautiful home in St Kilda. Sasja uses she/her pronouns and speaks about her incredible career in fashion, her love for cooking, and her worldwide travels. Sasja outlines her experience of transitioning at the age of 14 in Singapore, storing clothes in her families letterbox, dressing up in public toi…

Welcome to Season #2 of the Call Me By My Name Project | A Trans Oral History Project, hosted by Ryan (They/Them) & Lee (They/Them).Par Call Me By My Name

Lee & Ryan introduce Season One of The Call Me By My Name Project: A Trans Oral History Music throughout by 90s Flav. To find more on 90sFlav check out the following links: 🌙 youtu.be/eB_U-mbPuEE Spotify - goo.gl/UmAVYJ Itunes - goo.gl/3Ko2N8 Amazon - goo.gl/aL7mthPar Call Me By My Name

Lee and Ryan sit down with Maddie, a 28yr old trans woman who uses she/her pronouns. She talks about growing up in Adelaide, trans representation in the media, live music, visibility, reinvention and living authentically, and how crucial community is. Also included are shout-outs to Fitzroy North and Meetup.com. Lee learns not to put Ryan in charge…

Lee and Ryan meet Dorian, an artist and writer from Melbourne who uses he/him and they/them pronouns. Among other things, they talk about videogames, the importance of community spaces for older trans folks, barriers to accessing appropriate healthcare, the possibilities for playing with identity that Live Action Role Playing offers and carving out…

Ishaan, a 21-year-old trans man on exchange from Ho Chi Minh, chats with Lee and Ryan in the middle of Parkville (hence the intermittent tram noises!). He shares his experiences of living in Melbourne for the past year, talks about issues facing the trans community in Vietnam, gender-neutral bathrooms, freedom, his love of K-pop, and creative ways …

Lee and Ryan sit down with Sam, who uses they/them pronouns, at the Docklands library. Sam is the first dedicated LGBTIQ outreach lawyer in Victoria, and works out of St Kilda legal service. Sam talks about growing up in Perth, student activism at La Trobe, listening to and learning from trans and gender diverse young people, and some of the challe…

Frances, who uses she/her pronouns, invites Ryan and Lee into her house to chat about, among other things: birth charts, conspiracy theories, finding chosen family in Melbourne, and finding or hearing your own voice or truth amidst the various and often conflicting messages you’re receiving from your environment and the people around you. Frances a…

Sav, who uses they/them pronouns, talks to Lee and Ryan about their current PhD research on non-binary identities, what it’s like conducting research on something very close to them, moving to Melbourne from Perth, and concerns about using accessible bathrooms. Sav also discusses the limitations of language when it comes to articulating identities …

Lee and Ryan meet with Emms (she/her), a trans woman who works in IT. Emms talks about her wide range of interests, working and accessing community in Singapore in the mid-2000s, the importance of quality healthcare, the Filipino trans community, and navigating being trans in the workplace. She also emphasizes the importance of affirming all trans …

Lee and Ryan meet Erin (he/him) and his gorgeous cat Tribble (not pictured – that’s Boop!) at his place in St Kilda. Erin is, among other things, writer and producer of the Love and Luck Podcast, Australia’s first LGBT audio drama podcast – which is keeping him pretty busy! He talks about growing up in Goulburn and Canberra, how he’s found home in …

Lee and Ryan chat with Esther, who uses he/him pronouns, at his workplace in North Melbourne. Esther shares his experiences working as a union organizer, his involvement in trans-related groups or activities like The Shed and the Gender Agenda radio show on Joy FM, and tells us about the important people in his life. Esther also chats about cats, a…

Lee and Ryan meet Jay at Oakleigh Public Library on a Monday afternoon during the school holidays. Jay is a non-binary contemporary artist who works with 3D modelling, augmented reality, and has a keen interest in AI ethics. Jay talks to us about their partner and child, the significance of the term ‘queer,’ bi and enby erasure, web comics, interse…