Transcendence Art Show looks to shatter stereotypes about Hong Kong’s transgender community, build acceptance through interaction
- ‘If people have a chance to interact with a transgender person, it makes it easier for them [to accept us],’ advocate says of November 21-30 show
- The project at the KUC Space in Jordan will showcase coming-out stories dubbed ‘human library sessions’, along with photographs and film screenings
It took a good part of her 20s for Yanki Lam Kai-yan, now in her 30s, to lay the groundwork for her transition from man to woman, the gender she felt she was meant to be, three years ago.
Over the course of a decade, she took every opportunity to bring up transgenderism with friends and colleagues, trying to dismantle as many stigmas as she could. It was to prepare them for the change she knew was eventually coming.
In a recent interview, she still remembered her boss’ assuring reaction when she finally came out to him. “Things like these are all over the news these days, so it’s fine,” he told her.
“I was a little touched,” she recalled of his response.
Mimi Wong Yan-kam, an advocate for transgender rights, said that isolated moment showed how meaningful exchanges could be when a community is campaigning for wider social acceptance as a group.