When I was a kid and I had to hide my transgender identity, I became a great actor. Maybe even the greatest actor. I remember joking to myself that I would one day win an Oscar, with the sentimental hope that one day, people would understand. With an unsupportive family, no chance of receiving gender-affirming care, and an often unsafe school situation, I retreated far, far within myself. Billie went into hiding, existing only in my secret blog, in the few feminine items I was able to scrounge, and in my mind. I also existed, both briefly and randomly, on the Warwick University Pride online forum, where queer students showed me that I could exist, though I didn’t appreciate it at the time.
Trans Crisis Management
Over the years as I went through the process of living my life as a transgender woman, I encountered many instances of crisis management.…