The Power of Bubble

This collection is about "the power of the bubble."

During my recent participation in a Trans Rights Demonstration in Vienna, I was overcome with a profound sense of care, belonging, and solidarity.

There could be no better representation than people representing themselves. The trans community is hugely underrepresented, and even when they appear to be represented, it is mainly by cis men or other individuals and organizations that lack the lived experience and empathy to truly represent the trans community. Therefore, I present to you the speeches made by these inspiring representatives. One thing that stood out was how natural, strong, and fluid the solidarity among trans people was.

Often, when a speaker fumbles, the mic emits an annoying shrill sound, the speech goes in an unintended direction, or a disruption occurs, the speaker feels embarrassed, and the audience usually adds to their embarrassment. But not at this protest. The audience cheered and whistled every time a speaker needed comfort.

This is the bubble, this is the community that we all need and deserve.
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Hi, I am Georgie (they/them). I am representing Change, Transpeer Group Vienna.

So nice to be here today, thank you for the invitation. A slight warning at the beginning, content warning. There is going to be mention of “gatekeeping parents” in the speech.

When I first started coming out as transman to my parents in 2017, my dad became very silent, then did some research and came back with the following gems:

“You are too old to fully transition. This will never work. You are turning yourself into some in-between being that won't be able to exist outside of your urban bubble.”

I was living by myself in a different city and was financially independent. So, this was an opinion painful to hear, especially because I'd been having similar thoughts, but it didn't stop me. At first, transitioning was very lonely.

The path felt right, but I was walking it by myself in the dark. Then, I stumbled upon these meetings for transmas and AFAB non-binary people, organised by a group calling themselves The Change. It took me a while to actually attend the meeting, but when I did, there was an instant connection.

To be in a room with people who might look different, but who fully understand, who welcome you, who share their stories and listen to yours. It's such a powerful, positive feeling to finally belong.

Why am I telling you this?

Because today, I want to talk about the power of the bubble, the power of do-it-yourself and do-it-together.

Change started with five trans guys that met at some point in their transition, who looked for a space for themselves and couldn't find one.

So, they decided to meet once a month and open this to other transmas and AFAB non-binary people. If others were to join, great, but if not, they would at least have each other. That was seven years ago.

In the beginning, it was hard. People told them that what they're doing wasn't needed, that they were splitting the community. When we wanted to be political at Regenbogenparade and educate people on transphobia and the trans death rates, in 2018, we were told not to do it and to not spoil people's fun.

We might have listened, but we never stopped. Now, Change is an organisation with a website full of useful information, a very active Discord server. We take part in lots of events and collaborate with other lovely orgas.

And we still hold our monthly meetings. We create a space that people can enter and gain information in, share their stories, get support on their journeys. And we do it because we firmly believe in the magic of self-organisation, the need for it.

Who but us can and will stand up for ourselves, for each other! We can, and we will. We are doing it right now, and we will keep doing it. Thank you.

One of the wonderful things that has sprung forth from Change for me personally is the film project Transphoria, a documentary project that centres trans joy and positive experiences. Through this project, I've been able to meet so many amazing people who are expressing their transness and who are stepping forward and expanding the bubble. Who are artists, teachers, farmers, train conductors, doctors, or trainee to be.

So that our next generation will be met with understanding instead of being belittled. So that being trans will become a little bit easier in a world becoming harsher. I see all the groups and events that have come together and are happening now, and it's bittersweet.

It's so beautiful to see us all coming together, actively creating a community. It's also more needed than ever. So please, let us be tender and welcoming to each other.

To be forgiving and educate if the person standing next to you is still learning and makes a mistake. So, we can stand together and fight those who want to push us into making ourselves small. Who want us to disappear.

Who want to stamp out our bubble. Because that's the thing about bubbles. They may be fragile, but they're also flexible.

They can withstand so much, and they can spread and become so, so big. My dad realised that he doesn't have to understand everything to be supportive. He reads my speeches, and he always asks how things are going with change.

Recently, he came to visit, and I took him to some of my spaces. He was amazed. I smiled at him and said, life is great in the ever-growing bubble.

So, let us find a way to make our bubble bigger. Let's fight for a bubble. Together.

To protect it. So, it is strong, and magical, and welcoming. And it keeps expanding.

Thank you.