Hey, fam, it's me, Amara.

Welcome to the TransLash podcast, a show where we tell trans stories to save trans lives.

Well, today is July 4th, and it's a day where we are all bombarded with messages of Americana,

dripped in flags, and with images of rural areas.

But so rarely do we actually think of trans people living in the rural areas that we are shown as the basis for everything American. Now, that's because cities are

often seen as the epicenter of trans life and culture. But there are trans people who are living,

working, and fighting for trans rights and their ability to just live as they want in rural

areas all across the country. So that's why I wanted to have this conversation today

about people who are so often erased

and left out of our conversations and imagination

about who we are as a community.

And that's why we're going to be talking to two people

about the joys and challenges of rural

living as a trans person. Sit back on this Fourth of July and get ready for an amazing conversation.

First, I talk with community educator and advocate, Ray Holloman, about what it's like to balance

the risks and rewards of being a black trans man in rural

Tennessee. It's this constant reevaluation of, is living rurally the right thing to do? Is living in

Tennessee the right thing to do? Is it the right thing to do for my family? Next, I'm joined by

farmer and advocate, Ashley Swartz, who shares what it is like to transition

in a small town in Nebraska and the miracles that she's experienced all along the way.

Of course, my human first thought was, am I going crazy?

Did I make this up?

...