Transworkers Photo Exhibition takes pride of place at B RIGHT ON LGBT+ Community Festival

Positive images of trans people, by trans people, for everyone! An exhibition by photographer Stella Michaels.

STELLA Michaels’ Transworkers photo exhibition will take Pride of Place in the Starr Bar at The Phil Starr Pavilion during the B RIGHT ON LGBT+ Community Festival from March 28 – April 14.

The Transworkers project started in June 2016. It is a collection of photographs of “TQI” people at work, and includes people who are female to male, male to female, non binary or intersex. (Some may also be L, G, or B too.)

Transgender workers are not a new phenomenon, but past media coverage has focused primarily on the curiosity of their being transgender. It has seldom been about the individual’s personal value.

This exhibition has a different perspective: it seeks to show people who happen to fall under the broad umbrella term of ‘trans’ as being a vibrant and positive part of the workforce, with a wide range of skills, rather than being social curiosities.

Historically, the intensely negative pressures put upon the trans communities have made it very hard for them to live and especially to find work. Even now, many are rejected or marginalised in the workplace because of who they are. This often results in very low self-esteem for the individual, who may carry this self-image for life; poverty is the outcome, and this serves to feed the image. It’s a vicious circle.

Trans people lose from discrimination – but so does society as a whole. We all lose what they can offer, and employers lose skilled, talented and capable individuals whose resilience has enabled them to overcome the many difficulties presented to them. They are a very valuable resource.

The subjects in these photographs are positive role models. They show what can be gained.
Photographer, Stella Michaels, said; “If the people in the photographs can find work, so can others like them. I’d like the photographs to start us all thinking towards that – trans people, employers, and the public at large.”

If you would like to be photographed for this project, please contact Stella via their web page: www.stellapix.com using the ‘contact me’ tab. There is no charge, and the project is not for profit.

The B RIGHT ON LGBT+ Community Festival celebrates LGBT+ History, lives and culture is organised by the volunteers of the Brighton & Hove LGBT Community Safety Forum and takes place at the Phil Starr Pavilion – a multi functional, fully accessible, heated performance, conference and community space with a licensed bar located on Victoria Gardens, Brighton, BN1 1WN.

There will be a box office open on site at Victoria Gardens from noon on Tuesday, March 26 where you can purchase tickets or sign up to free training events during the festival.

Tickets for selected shows are also available from the Rainbow Hub, 93 St James Street, Brighton, BN2 1TP.