Samy Nour Younes: A short history of trans people's long fight for equality
Samy Nour Younes: Un breve relato de la larga lucha de los transexuales por la igualdad
Samy Nour Younes is a trans actor and activist who highlights the diversity of the trans experience -- not just in their struggles, but also in their triumphs. Full bio
Double-click the English transcript below to play the video.
transgénero por todas partes?
suddenly everywhere?
I get this question a lot.
me hacen mucho esta pregunta.
of American adults
de los estadounidenses
about 16 percent of non-trans Americans
un 16 % de los estadounidenses no trans
en la vida real.
this may seem like a new topic.
esto puede parecerles algo novedoso,
es más antigua de lo que creen
son parte de ese legado.
to the Pacific Islands and beyond,
las islas del Pacífico y más allá,
who recognize multiple genders,
múltiples tipos de género
and Pakistan, for example,
as 2,000 years ago in the Kama Sutra.
hace 2000 años.
each have their own terms,
tienen sus términos, pero la mayoría
the umbrella term "two-spirit."
"dos espíritus".
in their communities,
de sus comunidades
the spread of colonialism
de otra forma.
la historia trans, buscamos dos cosas:
and trans practices.
who presented as men
se hicieron pasar por hombres y luchar
their lives as women,
retomó su vida como mujeres,
continued to live as men.
siguieron viviendo como hombres.
confined to an asylum
confinado a un manicomio
for the rest of his life.
durante el resto de su vida.
of self-described androgynes
autodenominado andróginos
against the world's bitter persecution.
de la cruel persecución mundial
one of the earliest trans support groups.
de los primeros grupos de apoyo trans.
were starting to study trans medicine,
empezaban a estudiar la medicina trans,
by their trans patients,
de sus pacientes trans
who had corresponded extensively
que se correspondía ampliamente
for public cross-dressing.
por travestismo público.
like Alfred Kinsey
de la sexualidad como Alfred Kinsey
and the famous Christine Jorgensen,
y la conocida Christine Jorgensen,
her very public transition in 1952.
por su notoria transición en 1952.
were forming their own support networks,
organizaban sus propias redes de apoyo,
had to carve their own path.
tenían que labrar su propio camino.
walked in drag balls.
formaron parte del voguing.
"reinas callejeras",
for their gender expression
debido a su expresión de género
on the forefront of seminal events
de acontecimientos trascendentales
del colectivo LGBT.
at Cooper Do-nuts in 1959,
de Cooper Do-nuts en 1959,
and Marsha P. Johnson,
y Marsha P. Johnson,
Action Revolutionaries.
Action Revolutionaries.
for equal treatment under the law,
por la igualdad de trato ante la ley,
higher rates of discrimination,
a mayores tasas de discriminación,
and the looming AIDS epidemic.
y una epidemia de sida inminente.
que llevamos existiendo,
to disenfranchise trans people
de sus derechos a los transexuales
taken in Berlin in 1933,
en Berlín en 1933, todavía
en los libros de texto de historia
they considered un-German.
las obras que no consideran alemanas.
is that included in this massive pile
es que, en este enorme montón,
for Sexual Research.
Instituto para la Ciencia Sexual.
the trans movement in America,
el movimiento trans en EE.UU.,
and his peers in Germany
y sus compañeros alemanes
an early advocate for LGBT people.
desde un primer momento al colectivo LGBT.
of trans individuals.
sobre personas transexuales.
medical services and IDs.
atención médica y documentos de identidad.
the Berlin Police Department
de policía de Berlín
contra el colectivo LGBT
de este último en el instituto.
for trans research around the world.
para la investigación trans en el mundo.
to erase trans people,
de hacer desaparecer a los transexuales
why trans people are suddenly everywhere,
de repente, hay transexuales por doquier,
that we've been here.
hemos estado aquí.
that have been buried by time.
han sido enterradas con el tiempo.
but our struggles have been forgotten
sino que nuestra lucha se ha olvidado
that makes trans issues seem new.
que los temas trans parezcan algo nuevo.
who think that our movement
que cree que nuestro movimiento
telling us all to be patient,
que nos aconsejan tener paciencia
trans people have been demanding equality.
los transexuales exigiendo igualdad.
of color who are murdered
de color que son asesinadas
se someten a la justicia?
nuestras circunstancias?
to realize they're not alone.
se dieran cuenta de que no están solos.
was an anomaly that would die with me.
era una anomalía que moriría conmigo.
of otherness into my mind,
esta otredad en mi cabeza
anyone else like me.
a nadie más como yo.
antes a mis ancestros,
to find a source of pride
en encontrar un motivo de orgullo
vibrant community of people
y efervescente comunidad de personas
even when others won't,
cuando los demás no lo hacen,
even when we are struggling,
las cosas son difíciles
para celebrarse unos a otros,
ABOUT THE SPEAKER
Samy Nour Younes - Actor, activistSamy Nour Younes is a trans actor and activist who highlights the diversity of the trans experience -- not just in their struggles, but also in their triumphs.
Why you should listen
Samy Nour Younes's most recent credits include Into the Woods (Ford's Theater), The Triumphant and Pay No Attention to the Girl (Target Margin Theater), and Well Intentioned White People (Barrington Stage). He can also be seen on season four of Transparent.
As an activist, Nour Younes served on the leadership teams of the DC Area Transmasculine Society and the Baltimore Transgender Alliance. He has coorganized rallies for Pride, Transgender Day of Remembrance and more. He also leads panels on the barriers trans people face in accessing health care and has participated in national ad campaigns to promote awareness of LGBTQ+ issues.
Nour Younes was the cohost of insighT with Consuella Lopez, a DC-based online talk show with an all-trans panel. He aims to highlight the diversity of the trans experience -- not just in their struggles, but also in their triumphs. As of 2019, he has written one ten-minute play, Ancestral Lines and Other Tall Tales, which will be published in the upcoming Latinx Archive. He is currently developing two new works, including a solo show, both of which he aims to premiere in 2019.
Samy Nour Younes | Speaker | TED.com