Photo: Amos Mac and Juliana Huxtable, Rest, 2013. Courtesy the artists
Photo: Nelson Morales, Dear Mother, Unión Hidalgo, Oaxaca, 2016. Courtesy the artist
Newton’s third law, “For every action there is an equal and opposite reaction,” goes far beyond the scope of physics. We can see it in all areas of life, perhaps most clearly where oppression exists and takes root.
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Last month, American Danica Roem was elected Virginia’s first trans state legislator – unseating Bob Marshall, the man who sponsored the state’s transgender bathroom bill banning trans students from using public facilities that corresponded to their gender identity and required administrators to out trans students to their parents.
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Marshall’s efforts to deny fundamental human rights – life, liberty, and privacy – were the ultimate cause of his downfall, helping to bring forth a new era in the fight for trans rights and queer visibility as gender pioneers continue to push beyond the binary of the masculine-feminine divide.
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As photography has shown throughout its 180-year history, representation has the power to influence ideas, beliefs, behaviours, and ultimately, laws and society around the world. This winter, Aperture magazine introduces “Future Gender,” a new issue dedicated to the representation of trans and gender-nonconforming lives, communities, and histories.
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Sabelo Mlangeni, Iduku, Tshepo, 2011, from the series Black Men in Dress. Courtesy of the artist and ICA.