Queer communities have long been aware that binary definitions of “male” and “female” don’t reflect all lived experiences of gender. For generations, transgender and gender-nonconforming people have supported each other in an often-hostile social climate. They built community at social functions and fought proudly for liberation.
The advent of the Internet brought gender self-determination and self- representation to new levels of possibility. AOL chat rooms evolved into Facebook groups, where isolated individuals found freedom and connection. These spaces empowered a multiplicity of politicized identities, rooted in intersecting experiences of race, ability, religion, geography, and class, in addition to gender. Access to stories previously shared through oral tradition helped combat historical erasure or misrepresentation.
In May 2014, Time magazine proclaimed the arrival of “The Transgender Tipping Point” with a towering image of the actress Laverne Cox on the cover. The same year, Facebook declared fifty-six gender categories for users’ pro , honoring the spectrum of possibilities. Despite the gains, trans people still face disproportionate rates of murder and suicide, highlighting the limitations of increased visibility by the mainstream media.
As online communities thrive and spill into public life, an important archive of self-revelation, debate, political organizing, photo sharing, and video posting has emerged. Liberated expressions of gender are celebrated in inventive music videos, drag, and fashion, often permeated by a celebratory and colorful queer aesthetic. Regardless of current political sentiment, the gender revolution surges onward.
Organized by Carol Squiers in collaboration with Quito Ziegler
Perpetual Revolution: The Image and Social Change
January 27 to May 7, 2017
International Center of Photography
250 Bowery
New York, NY 10012
USA
