Expanded Impact: Diversifying Modes of Engagement with Trans Youth Poets
- Transcribez
- Kelly Writers House
Transcribez is a free creative writing group for trans and gender non-conforming youth ages 14-24. Guided by trans leadership, Transcribez sprang from an identified need for Philadelphia area trans youth to build community and share space together; to share space where their lived experiences are respected and honored without the scrutiny and projection that too often hampers transgender expression. To date, Transcribez has conducted 54+ workshops and served over 115 unique young writers. Transcribez utilizes community guidelines that promote an atmosphere of empathy, creativity, and confidentiality, and maintains these priorities at the center of their work. With support from the Sachs Program, Transcribez will stabilize their program following the volatility caused by the pandemic. They will utilize the funding to compensate contributors and to expand their reach: creating a website that will act as a platform for participants’ writing, as well as provide up-to-date information about Transcribez. The website will celebrate Transcribez’s impact with written reflections by staff and other members of the Transcribez community, and allow Transcribez to expose the world to the work of young trans writers whose voices they are committed to uplifting.