Iranian-American and trans man Tony Zosherafatain decided to make a film that would take the measure of some of the damage done to trans men and women during Donald Trump’s administration, which was notoriously hostile to trans people—their rights, their protections, their ability to serve their country. The result is a deeply moving film that reveals again the pure, sometimes lethal hatred in the land aimed at trans folks and cynically exploited by monsters in public office. Diving into the deep end of his theme, Zosherafatain turned his camera on individuals living in states Trump won in 2016 and 2020.
In North Carolina, there is teenage Ash, a trans boy whose mother, Daisy, looks out for his medical needs while together they grapple with the hurdles of discriminatory bathroom rules, heartless bureaucracies, and a health insurance company that will not pay for life-saving treatment Ash needs. There’s also Rebecca, a Latina trans woman from Texas who was detained for months in an ICE facility. Rebecca was held in a men’s holding area, brutalized, refused her hormones, and her sex was constantly misidentified. Zopsherafatain takes Rebecca back to the ICE center to capture the heart-wrenching reminisce of her trauma. That move might have been a debatable choice made by the director, but Rebecca’s emotions underscore the largely below-the-radar pain endured by trans migrants at the hands of authorities.
The third subject is Evonné, a Black, gender-fluid trans woman in Mississippi. Finally, there’s Shane, a Native American transgender veteran in Idaho, already well known and a strong advocate for the inclusion of trans people in the military. A frequent denouncer of Trump’s anti-trans policies, Shane adds a little cable-news-savvy heft to the proceedings. Zosherafatain gets behind the daily, general, data-driven stories about the state of trans America, reminding us these are flesh and blood persons often enduring real suffering and inhumanity. We all saw select minorities and groups thrown under the bus during the Trump years in order to appease a right-wing base and powerful evangelicals. Zosherafatain helps us remember the toll on those crushed by political expediency. Strongly recommended. Aud: I, J, H, C, P.
Trans in Trumpland is a VL Pride Month Pick. For the month of June, we spotlight films and documentaries that celebrate the LGBTQ+ community.
