Hey girls, it's Zach Saffert and you're listening to Vibe Check.

Welcome back to another installment of HASIS, a Vibe Check series, where we highlight and

converse with amazing Black women for Black History Month and

Women's History Month. Today, I'm speaking with my friend Tourmaline. She's a writer,

activist, and filmmaker whose work explores black, queer, and trans histories, liberation,

and most importantly, joy. Her films and visual art, collected by major institutes like

the Whitney, the Met, the Museum of Modern Art, just to name a few, have submitted her as a leading voice in transjustice and storytelling.

Her acclaimed short film, Happy Birthday, Marcia, helped her become known as one of the go-to artists and historians making work about queer history, but it's her new book, Marcia, the joy and defiance of Marsha P. Johnson,

that now squarely cements her as the preeminent scholar on trans icon, Marcia P. Johnson.

Today, I'm sitting down with her to discuss the figure we all know, but truly don't know,

and to explore what Marcia's story can teach us even today. I can't wait for you all to hear

this conversation, so let's jump right in.

Tourmaline, thank you so much for being with us today. I'm just so excited. Thank you so much for

having me. I'm so excited. Before we jump

into the conversation, you know, I have known of your work for so long. I actually almost,

and I'm embarrassed to say this, I almost bought a piece of your work years ago at a gallery.

And then I left. It was in L.A. before I lived in L.A. and then I've always regretted it. And then as I've gotten to know you through our networks of friends, like Raquel Willis, who's been on the show and so many others.

My one gift is that I've gotten to actually say, I know Tourmaline in a personal way, even though I did not buy her work years ago, which is a really bad, as an art collector, bad decision of mine, you know.

It's okay.

There's more, I think that work is now in the Met, which is a fun little...

Just the Met, you know, just the Met.

But there's, you know, there's a new series that I'm working on that I would love to share with you first.

...