Digital Transgender Archive

Interview with Lourdes Ashley Hunter

Lourdes Ashley Hunter is a black trans woman who was born in 1976 in Detroit, Michigan where they* lived for twenty-six years. They are a gender non-conforming, non-binary gender abolitionist and social justice activist who doesn’t believe in gender which they see as socially constructed. They grew up expressing their gender non-conformity during the late 1970s, early 1980s and don’t recall being shamed or policed for their expression too much because they had three protective brothers and a supportive family who had their back. They are passionate about ending mass genocide that they see happening in minority communities, such as black, indigenous, and undocumented communities, in the United States and around the world. They see liberation as a form of affirmation and celebration of ourselves and others where we support and uplift each other. At 17 during high school they started a youth group for trans and gender non-conforming people of color in Detroit, creating a newsletter and passing out condoms in high risk areas. Hunter left Detroit for New York City in 2002 where they lived in a men’s shelter for 21 months which opened their eyes to state-sanctioned violence. They were involved in organizations like Queers for Economic Justice (a homeless shelter program), Trans Justice, and the Sylvia Rivera Law Project. They have taken hormone pills and injections along with laser treatments to feel more comfortable in their body. They also hosted a TED Talk where they spoke of holding white people accountable for the violence happening in their lives. They believe good housing, healthcare, jobs, education, employment, and ending structural violence are important issues for trans people. They also worked with the White House for the last LGBTQ event of the Obama administration to celebrate and create a monument for trans people. (*Hunter did not specify a specific gender pronoun to use. When asked what their gender pronouns were, they said goddess. They, a gender-neutral pronoun, is used in this abstract as a placeholder since no pronoun was specified.)