Below are themes and associated questions that you may be asked during your interview. As you prepare for your oral history, please feel free to let the archivist and/or your interviewer know if there are questions that you would rather not be asked.
Tell me about your childhood and your family.
Can you talk about you or your family’s spiritual practices?
What was Atlanta (or your hometown) like as you were growing up?
Who were the friends you grew up with? What were they like?
How did you feel about gender/gender expression as a kid?
What did you consider your gender as a child? Did you even think about it?
What was the moment you began questioning/realized you were trans?
Did your friendships change once you realized you were and/or came out as trans?
What role did friendships play in your coming out and self-acceptance process?
How has your understanding of your gender (sexuality/race/class/ability/etc) changed over the years
How do you see yourself in this moment of increased trans visibility?
What people have been most important in your life?
What communities are you part of now? In the past? Tell me about them.
What scenes have you been part of? How have they changed or evolved?
What kinds of relationships do you have with other trans/gender-diverse/nonbinary people?
How did you first learn about or encounter other trans people?
Can you talk about the trans communities that you have been involved with?
How have trans communities changed over the years?
Can you talk about memorable experiences you have had with the trans community over the years?
Were there spaces/communities where you straddled being trans with another identity?
Were there spaces/communities where you didn’t feel comfortable being out or felt more comfortable being out?
How do you see yourself in relation to other social and political movements?
Do you identify with LGB communities? If so, what is it like being trans in those spaces?
Do you have any intergenerational relationships with trans or LGB people? Can you talk about the?
If you feel comfortable sharing, do you currently have a spiritual or religious identity?
How does this spiritual/religious identity intertwine with your trans identity?
How has Georgia changed in the years that you’ve lived here?
What’s your favorite thing about Georgia?
What’s hardest about living in Georgia?
What’s it like being trans in Georgia? How does it compare to other places?
Are there particular communities in Georgia that have been especially important for you?
What particular places/spaces in Georgia have been most important for you?
Are there aspects of the trans community in Georgia – past or present – that you would especially want remembered?
How does your experience of being trans now compare to the past?
How do you think trans issues/politics have changed over the years?
What are the biggest challenges you’ve faced around being trans?
What kinds of employment have you had? How do you make ends meet?
Have you ever been discriminated against at your job or school—either because of your gender or other aspects of your identity?
Have you had experiences with police/law enforcement?
What are your everyday safety concerns?
Have you ever experienced issues with housing?
Do you feel that you’ve had to choose between expressing your gender identity and economic security or safety?
Do you have any experiences with mental health and mental illness?
Do you have experiences using substances (drugs)— has that been important in your life?
What have been your experiences with healthcare?
Have you ever been on public assistance? What were your experiences like around that?
Have you gone to other service providers (e.g., support groups; medical care, including HIV/AIDS providers, Planned Parenthood; housing or employment providers; etc)? When was the first time you did that?
What have been some important sources of support for you over the years?
Tell me a time when you felt seen.
What does transitioning mean to you?
Did you choose to transition in any way? If so, what did this process mean to you and your gender expression?
What were the roses and thorns of transitioning?
If you’ve accessed medical transition, how did you do that? How did you cover the costs for transition?
Have you ever gotten healthcare outside of licensed/legal contexts? (black market hormones, unlicensed or “back alley” medical procedures, e.g., surgery or silicone injections, etc).
Have you ever used things besides western medicine to help you feel better in your body or gender? (e.g., body modification, drugs, religious/spiritual practices, etc)
How has passing or being stealth been part of your trans experience?
Did you ever participate in activism for trans, LGBTQ, or other issues?
What was your call to action?
Were there times where you didn’t feel called to activism?
Were the points where you were burnt out?
If there was any, what representations did you see of trans people in media as a kid?
How do you feel trans representation in the media has changed over the years?
