Ep. 3 - Redefining masculinity, becoming a Black man, and starring on POSE with Jevon Martin
#3: This episode’s guest is Jevon Martin! Jevon (he/him) Jevon is a proud grandparent, father, & husband. He is an actor, model, fashion designer, producer, entertainer, peer educator, HIV test counselor, and a resounding voice in the community as a consultant on the transgender experience and nonprofit business. Jevon facilitates workshops, seminars, and panels, and he is unapologetically advocating on issues that affect the TLGBQI+ community with an emphasis on the transgender population.
You can find Jevon at https://jevonmartin.com
Links/resources in the episode:
Jevon’s GoFundMe to transport all the kids and their car seats in one car!
Elevated Access
Monica Roberts Resource Center
Black Trans Advocacy Coalition (BTAC)
POSE
TransGriot
Princess Janae Place
Equality Texas
AIDS Healthcare Foundation
FLUX
Strut Your Pride retro basketball shoes
Playing With Dolls documentary
Surviving Voices - National AIDS Memorial
On Christopher Street: Transgender Stories (affiliate link)
Trans New York: Photos and Stories of Transgender New Yorkers (affiliate link)
The Senior
Trans in Trumpland
Everyday Trans Activism is a production of Parents of Trans Youth, a social impact business providing learning, support, and community to parents and caregivers of transgender, nonbinary, and gender-diverse kids.
Host Mandy Giles (she/her) is the Texas parent of two transgender young adults and a fierce advocate for trans kids, their families, and the transgender community.
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FULL TRANSCRIPT
Mandy: Hey y'all, and welcome to Everyday Trans Activism. I am your host, Mandy Giles, and my pronouns are she/her, and I'm the parent of two transgender young adults and the founder of the resource Parents of Trans Youth. Today's guest is Jevon Martin. I met Jevon when we were in the same cohort of the Equality Texas Leadership Program a couple of years ago, and I am really looking forward to hearing his story, because I was poking around on his website. Jevon has done about a thousand things and is just a renaissance man. So Jevon, welcome. I am really glad you're here to talk with me today.
Jevon: Oh, thank you, Mandy. I'm so excited to be here as well. And yes, I have done thousands of things.
Mandy: Well, the yes, I cannot wait to hear about everything. So go ahead and introduce yourself however you want to.
Jevon: Okay, thank you. So, my name is Jevon Martin, and I am currently the Assistant Director of [00:01:00] Gender Affirming Care at Elevated Access. I am the founder of Princess Janae Place in the Bronx, New York. I am also the founder of the Monica Roberts Resource Center here in Houston, Texas. And I am also a fashion designer of shoes: Strut Your Pride. You can find that at Alive Shoes. And I'm also a minister. I do a lot. Yes.
Mandy: Okay. I don't think I even knew about the minister part. Okay. tell me about the move from, from New York to Texas and how that has been for you in terms of the work that you do and being visible as a transgender person and working in transgender rights. How was that a culture shock for you?
Jevon: Yes. First, let me tell you how we almost died on the highway, right? Because yes, so we, we put all of our stuff in, it’s like a company that takes your stuff and [00:02:00] transport it for you. And then we had the little scraps that was left. So I got this U-Haul hitch and we put this stuff on the back, and we drove our little Toyota up. So, I was getting tired and I told my wife, I said, Hey, let's pull over. So, she started driving. Everything was fine with her driving and then she got tired and it was my turn again. So, here I am. The last thing I remember, it was really dark and it was a big truck in front of us and then all of a sudden it was like, Boop, boop. Like the car bumped off the side of the rail and came back into the highway. And it was, I believe it was about five o'clock in the morning, about 4:45, five o'clock in the morning. And I'm like, we're okay. We're fine. We're okay. So my grandson was still asleep. My wife picks her head up like, but what happened? I was like, I was like, nothing happened. [00:03:00] I said, but I'm about to pull over to the rest stop. And she was like, did you hit the rail? And I was like, no. I hit something, but it wasn't the rail. When I tell you we have an angel or guardian or something, because prior to me nodding off, there was no rails. There was nothing. It was just a ditch on the left side. So It must have been one of those curved concrete walls because we bumped it, and it bumped us back. We didn't lose the trailer or anything.
Mandy: Oh, or your lives.
Jevon: or our lives, right? So, that was our first exciting moment heading from New York to Texas.
Mandy: Oh my gosh. Where were you when that happened?
Jevon: We don't even know. We don't even remember.
Mandy: Just somewhere on the way.
Jevon: it was pitch black. It was dark. It was, it was horrible. 24-hour drive [00:04:00] from New York to Texas. Yeah.
Mandy: That's a long one. Well, yeah, that,
Jevon: It was an experience.
Mandy: What a welcome to your, your new home.
Jevon: Yes. Yes. But we survived. And, we got here. So first off I bought the house online. Never saw the house. We did a virtual buy and yes.
Mandy: What a leap of faith. I was wondering, yeah, that the time that would be the time. Well, tell me a little bit about what you are doing now in terms of trans rights and, well, cause you're doing so many things simultaneously. So I guess just dive in wherever you want to.
Jevon: Yes. So, as we both were on the team to go lobby, but we couldn't lobby, right? Because of COVID, right?
Mandy: Like when you were for in New York or in Texas?[00:05:00]
Jevon: no, here.
Mandy: Here in Texas. Okay. Okay.
Jevon: because we were both on the same team.
Mandy: Oh, I see. For the Equality Texas deal.
Jevon: yes, so, during our time, because In, that we couldn't meet up physically, right, but, normally we would have been in meetings together and gone to lobby and all of that.
So I have not been to Austin on that level because. It's like, so, so many things happening and so many people here already doing the work. And I don't want to seem like I'm coming here to take over. I want to support however I can. Because they're, they're doing an amazing job here. And so, I'm in the background pushing whatever they send me. Whatever emails, trying to get people to sign up and sign on petitions and whatever we can do.
I am a voice for the Black trans men for, for masculinity, period. I make sure that when I [00:06:00] walk in a room that they know that I am of trans experience because I know that I have the privilege of walking in a room as a cis man.
And so, I always make it known that I am transgender. That sometimes, it eases, some people and sometimes it doesn't, but I do like to talk about my experience and what that looks like in masculinity.
Mandy: Tell me more about that because you sound very specific In what? In masculinity. So tell me, tell me a little bit about that.
Jevon: yes. Because masculinity can be toxic. So we break that down and we talk about it. A group of guys, several groups of guys. We talk about how we can detoxify masculinity. Because when guys grow up, I say boys grow up. They think in order to be a man, you have to be hyper [00:07:00] masculine. You want to lift weights, you want to have muscles, and you don't have to. Right? When you grow into whoever you grow into, because sometimes boys don't grow into men. You know? And when we're talking about the trans community, sometimes you grow into a woman. Sometimes you grow into non gender, right?
So that's your choice, right? That's how you feel. Because a lot of the cis world, they don't understand that you become a person. You're not just born that person, right? I, I know you get it, Mandy. You, you've always gotten it and
Mandy: Oh not always. Not always.
Jevon: no. I mean, I mean, you know, since, since you've had trans kids, right? And, and, and you've, and you've worked hard and, and I love your shows. Bring out the realness, the [00:08:00] raw, and you tell it like it is, and that's what we need. We need more parents, more cis people speaking about how it is, what to do, what not to do, what to say, what not to say. Because the trans community is tired of saying it.
Trans 101 is no longer our job, right? And so, when we talk about masculinity, we want to talk about all phases of masculinity, right? Maleness. What does that look like? You can be flamboyant. and still be a male. There's nothing wrong with that. You can be masculine and you're still male. You can wear a dress, a skirt, and you're still male.
Right? A kilt. Right? When we have to break this stuff down and, oh, you're not Scottish, you shouldn't wear a kilt. Why not? [00:09:00] Why can't I wear a kilt? I have several.
Mandy: There you go.
Jevon: But that, that does not make me any less of the person that I am. And this is what we're breaking down.
Mandy: it sounds like, and correct me if I'm wrong, that it's a breaking down of societal definitions from a cis normative world, cis het normative world, of what it means to be a man or to be masculine or maleness. So breaking those down and then building it into something new and redefining it. Is that kind of what, what you're doing?
Jevon: Correct. Redefining masculinity is the purpose.
Mandy: Okay.
Jevon: But more so, I just want people to be themselves. Don't try to mimic someone else, and definitely don't be like me. Be better than me, right? Go, go higher. [00:10:00] Reach for the stars. Because the, the pavement has been paved. It's there. Walk on it. Walk through and shine, right?
Don't try to reinvent the wheel. Just keep pushing, and if you come to an end of the road, trust and believe it's being built. And if you don't see it, join us and help us build it.
Mandy: oh, I love that. I'm going to start crying. That's beautiful.
Jevon: no!
Mandy: No, no, no. In a good way. Oh, that's beautiful. Help us build the road. So speaking of building, I want to hear about the Monica Roberts Resource Center. Is that, did I get the correct? Okay. Tell me, tell me about that. And that's, that's here. So how about this: for listeners who are not familiar with who Monica Roberts was, I would love for you to say a little bit about her and then what the center does.
Jevon: Oh my goodness, now I'm gonna cry, right? So, okay. Okay, so Monica Roberts was a fierce activist for the trans [00:11:00] community. Big, bold, Black, trans woman. In your face. Shut up, fool. Don't, don't start with my community. Don't start with my people, type of woman. And I love and miss her so much. She passed away a few years ago and I wanted to honor her memory and start a resource center because Monica was very resourceful. Anything you wanted to know, she knew the answer and it was all mentally locked in her brain. She didn't have a Rolodex that I knew of, but when I asked her a question, she would be, Well, you know, Jevon yeah, let me. Yes, because I know, and I was like, I knew you knew, right? She had a paper online: TransGriot. She was a poet. She wrote, she also received many awards from her writings. And, she was just so amazing. [00:12:00] I miss her so much. She inspired many, many, many
Mandy: Yes.
Jevon: she inspired me to keep pushing in advocacy and activism because I was going to stop. I had enough. Like, being trans is one thing, right? I never really had any issues from anyone bullying me for being trans or none of that. No anti-trans rhetoric from anyone. But what I have experienced is the racism.
Mandy: Okay. Mm hmm.
Jevon: Also, what I didn't know was transitioning from, I can say this, a woman, because I didn't transition until like my mid-twenties going into my thirties. I was a woman already, and I have no issues with saying that. I [00:13:00] transitioned into a Black man.
Jevon: Now, I say this often because I didn't know what came with becoming a Black man. When I tell you that's when I started experiencing the police hurt, the masculinity hurt from other men, the, the hurt from women put me in the mindset of, what did I just do? I transitioned for my happiness because this is how I feel comfortable, and everyone was mistaking me for a young man anyway. They were like, young man, can you hold the door for me? I'm on my way, or thank you young man, and I would be like, okay.
I transitioned because that's how I felt. I knew that there was something different. Once that started happening, I was like, oh my [00:14:00] goodness, I'm not prepared for this. There's no manual, no rule book, or anything that can prepare you for being a Black man in America. Nothing. Nothing at all. I, I, I was handcuffed and slammed on a car because, my license was suspended and I didn't know, but I was driving someone home that was drunk. And in that moment was when I realized, oh no, what did I do? I was afraid for my life. They handcuffed me, once we got into the police station, they handcuffed me to the outside of the cell. Because I still had female parts, although, you know, I had male, and my name was changed. They didn't want to put me in there with the guys, and if they would have found out, it would have been issues. they handcuffed me [00:15:00] to, to a lady that was on drugs outside, and she was like, Why is he here next to me? He's touching me! He's touching me! But because she did that, I got out quicker. So,
Mandy: Oh, okay.
Jevon: she did that. I'm so glad she
Mandy: One silver lining of being in an in-between place! Mm hmm.
Jevon: Yes, yes, but that experience alone taught me to walk different, talk different, present different, and be different, right? I, I no longer wore baggy pants. I no longer wore hoodies. I no longer walked out late at night. I changed that because I didn't want to be looked at as a threat. Right?
Because if, if you think about it, this, this is society. I don't know why it's that way, but if you come across a group of guys wearing jeans, hoodies and sneakers coming towards you and you're [00:16:00] alone, it's, it's been proven. Women will grab their bag. They will cross the street. Even people from different races will do the same thing.
But if you see a group of guys dressed in business suits walking towards you, You might not cross the street, because you're thinking, oh, these are educated people they have on business suits, these Black men don't look dangerous because they have on suits, right?
Jevon: Meanwhile, you never know. They probably have on suits with no jobs and the, and the guys that had on the hoodies and the jeans probably are multi-millionaires because they, they could be football players, they could be basketball players, they could be business owners, right? You just don't know from the way a person dresses.
Mandy: Sure.
Jevon: But I definitely changed my whole appearance, everything after that, But getting back to Monica, it was her that pushed me and said, Jevon, don't give up. [00:17:00] Because the community needs you. But in that moment, I was going through, but I need support. I'm, I'm always giving, showing up and being there, but I need support around this because I just transitioned into a Black man.
I, I, I didn't know what I was doing. I didn't have anyone to show me what to do. My father was gone. My brothers were in other states. And I didn't have anyone to show me anything until I met the Honorable Louis Mitchell. And when I tell you this man welcomed me with open arms and love and he just, he gave me what I needed.
And he's also a Black trans man very well known in the community, and I'm just grateful to him and for him for [00:18:00] just being that big brother that I needed. And Monica was the big sister that I needed, and she kept telling me, Come to H-Town, you gotta come visit. And my wife and I never visited.
My wife and Monica were like the best friends. Like, oh my goodness, every time we went to BTAC, BTAC is the Black Trans Advocacy Conference, in April. And so they would get together, that's the first person my wife would look to see, and Monica was looking to see her. And they just grew, inseparable.
And Monica often wrote about me in TransGriot. her blog is still going. Her blog is still up. I, I also wrote, oh, I'm a writer too.
Mandy: Add that to the list. Okay.
Jevon: yes. So I produce documentaries. I actually have some documentaries coming out I could talk about.
Yes, so Monica wrote about my 50th birthday. And she wrote about Black trans men in her blog, and DeeDee Waters [00:19:00] is still running her blog now today. I just wrote about the BTAC that we went to last year. So, I did a recap of it and it was fun to share and it's just amazing to be in a space with hundreds of Black trans people and their wives and cousins and sisters and extended family and children. Yeah, it was amazing. I believe it was about 440 people.
Mandy: wow. yeah, I would imagine that would be, well, a celebration for sure. Golly, I can only imagine the joy that would be there and and empowering and especially like someone in your situation who it sounded like you felt alone in your circumstance and to be able to go to an event like that and see, Oh, my gosh, there's 440 people here who are here to support me and help me then and help each other. I'm glad it exists for sure.
Jevon: funny story, [00:20:00] I was the first member of Black Trans Men Inc. Black Trans Men Inc. turned into Black Trans Advocacy Conference, so It started out 2010. It was Black trans men, then Black trans women, and together we formed BTAC, Black Trans Advocacy Conference. Then we started with the Gender Nonconforming Nonbinary, MX, and then we brought them in.
We have the Golden Flames. The Golden Flames are the elders. We have the Anchors. The Anchors are our spouses. Carter and S. B. Brown, they run Black Trans Advocacy Conference. They are wonderful people, and if you've never been to a conference full of Black trans love and just celebration, right? That's the place that you want to go, and just love on one another.
Mandy: gosh, I can [00:21:00] imagine just how filling that would be to fill your cup would be runneth over, I'm sure.
Jevon: like a family reunion.
Mandy: yeah especially at a time, from your experience and the intersection of, of being trans and being Black and just being just existing. From from what people have have told me just existing is exhausting, and then throwing a little bit of advocacy activism that is also exhausting.
And so to have those kind of spaces that really fill you and empower you and To be filled with love and celebration, I think are so necessary. So I'm glad that that's there. and I will definitely link that in the show notes and all of these resources that you're talking about for sure.
Okay. So you touched on so many things. Okay. Documentary. What are you, what are you working on?
Jevon: Okay, so right now I am working on Dancing with Dolls and we had [00:22:00] a viewing in New York. Pearl Martin is the director. I am one of the producers. I actually help film as well. We've been filming this, I want to say since 2018,
Mandy: Oh,
Jevon: the pandemic came, so. Yeah, yeah, so we finally pieced some stuff together, we had a viewing, and we realized that we should have a voiceover during the time when we're showing words, right?
Someone should be speaking those words because there was some misconceptions, there were some I guess, I guess you could say misrepresented situations because they thought my wife was trans and my wife is not trans. Because it the name of it is Dancing With Dolls. And it's about trans women and their lives from I want to say the 70s and 80s [00:23:00] and the sex work and the people that they dated, the, the gay men, the dancers in the clubs the old 42nd Street, the peep shows, and how we have evolved.
Then there was a portion where there were words talking about, during the time of the club, the raids, and all this stuff at Stonewall there were trans men visible there, but we didn't have that word, trans men. Right? So, we were masculine women, we were AGs, we were dykes, right?
Mandy: Tell me what, tell me what AG is.
Jevon: Aggressive Girl.
Mandy: Oh, okay. Okay.
Jevon: But we often were the security, right? We were the ones that were helping the trans women take their bags, the car, taking them in the club and to the dressing room so that they could perform. [00:24:00] But we were left out of many stories when they told documentaries. So this time Mama Pearl said, Jevon, we're not going to leave you out of the story.
So she put me in the story. She also put my wedding in the story because they wanted to end it on love. And how trans people can find love and get married and stuff like that. she also did all of the flowers and decoration for my wedding. So, it was, it was beautiful, it was
Mandy: how wonderful. When can the public see it? do you have a time schedule?
Jevon: I want to say April or May because she wants to put it in the film festivals.
Mandy: Oh, okay. So April and May of 2024.
Jevon: but you can see some of my old stuff. I worked with the National AIDS Memorial to do Surviving Voices. And so, there's Surviving Voices: The Trans Community. There is Surviving Voices in the Black community.[00:25:00] And right now, currently we're working on Surviving Voices in the Hispanic community.
Mandy: Okay.
Jevon: that should be out, I want to say maybe April or May as well. I worked on On Christopher Street Stories. Not only did I work on that, but I was in it. So, world-renowned photographer Mark Seliger took, took our pictures in the book. And there's also a short documentary about it. And my wife and I are also in that. Also there's a book called Trans New York. I wrote one of the essays.
Mandy: Okay.
Jevon: you can pick it up, Barnes & Noble. Also On Christopher Street, Transgender Stories, you can pick that up at Barnes & Noble as well.
Mandy: Okay. I will link to all those. Okay. Speaking of visual media that you have been in, I have to talk and ask you about POSE. [00:26:00]
Jevon: I knew you were gonna do that!
Mandy: okay. So listener, Jevon just like dropped a bomb on me the last time we talked that he was in POSE, and I had just finished the series because we just got Hulu. Wow. And you could have picked me up off the floor. Oh my gosh. Okay. So I have so many questions. So first of all, why were you in it?
Jevon: So being, being a part of ballroom culture myself I, I am the creator of Trans Men Realness category, because I used to walk Butch Realness, and then once I transitioned, ha ha.
Mandy: I have goosebumps. Oh my gosh.
Jevon: it, it wasn't fair. it wasn't fair to the other contestants because I had a beard. My voice was deep, and I was very masculine.
So walking against a butch lesbian or a butch woman period, because not everyone was a lesbian. They kept saying it wasn't fair. And I had top surgery at the time. And for those listeners that don't know what top surgery is, that's a double mastectomy that I had so I [00:27:00] had a male top.
And so I would, you know, take my shirt off, I would flex and everything, and then I would win. There were other trans men that would also walk, and they would also win, so we needed our own category. So that's why I went state to state and advocated for Trans Man Realness. And the main ballroom scene started to pick it up, and now we have not only Realness, but we have Sex Siren, and Runway, and even trans men, they vogue, so. It's a lot.
Mandy: Yeah.
Jevon: But, talking about POSE. POSE was amazing and being a part of the ballroom culture and houses. We had a casting call that was for ballroom. And so I showed up and I made the cut. So I was an extra, background. And when you go back to watch it
Mandy: I will.
Jevon: [00:28:00] every time you see a ball, just look for me in the crowd and you'll see me. I also judged the scene, the scene where Candy and Electra were fighting.
Mandy: Yes.
Jevon: I'm one of the judges.
Mandy: okay. I'm going to go back and
Jevon: I am all the way, I'm all the way to the left, right next to - Oh my goodness, what was his name? Pray Tell. Yes.
Mandy: Okay. Oh, okay. I'm going to go back and look at it. Oh, yeah. So I'll go back and look at every ballroom scene and then freeze frame. Like, where's
Jevon: No, you, you, you'll see me. You will definitely see me at every ballroom. Even, even there was one time where I want to say, the two guys were talking at a ball, like in the hallway, and I walked by, slowly.
Mandy: Very slowly looking at the camera. Hello. No, no, just kidding.
Jevon: Cause, I, I so wanted to, I really wanted to. But they were like, just go over there, grab, grab the jacket off the rack, put the jacket [00:29:00] on, and walk away. And that's exactly what I did.
Mandy: oh, my gosh, I would not have been able to contain myself. I would have been totally trying to steal the scene.
So when, when they had casting calls and I know that a lot of the people who worked on the show were trans and in ball culture. was that something that was obvious? Did you feel like it was well done, that it was really representative of how things were or
Jevon: Yes, yes, it was very well done. And I know everyone that was involved. From the background to the front. I was about to say Tyra, but Dominique is my sister. She was always my sister prior to being in the limelight. She was our showgirl, right? She performed at so many clubs, and I used to drive her to go perform and wait for her.
And she always made sure I [00:30:00] had something to drink and eat. And she took care of me while I was taking care of her, so. It was beautiful. Leomi is one of my kids. Wonder Woman, Leomi, yeah. So many of them Daeshawn. The majority of them that were in the lead roles, I've known them for many, many years.
MJ. I've known MJ since she was young. Like, just starting out.
Mandy: oh, that must be, wow, you, to see your family and friends and, and create this incredible world.
Jevon: But, but the thing for me is that they were always winners, right, for us. because in the ballroom, they had already won. Like, Dominique is an icon in the ballroom scene, right? So it's like, she was already at that status with us, you know. It was just for the world to catch up.
Mandy: I guess that makes it more to, to have [00:31:00] that icon status or to have the winners and everything recognized, like you said, for the rest of the world. I mean, hello, you know me, a middle aged, white cis het woman, like, oh no, I know everything about ballroom culture. No, I do not. I have a window, a window into what that culture is.
Well, thank you for, for telling about your experience on that. That must have been fascinating and to see your friends and family get the recognition that they deserve.
Jevon: Yeah, it was amazing. It was amazing because even just watching yourself on TV, right? When the camera went by, I was like, that's me! Right? And it was just, it was just really weird to me because being on set for hours just to get one hour of show. The many takes that you had to do. And so, a lot of the people were from ballroom, but they're not from [00:32:00] the set.
So they, they didn't know how to do certain things. So, on set, when, when they're saying, okay, we're going to roll through this, nobody talk, just go through the motions. So there was a lot of
Mandy: I love it. Gesturing.
Jevon: Right? A lot of gesturing, but nothing coming out of your mouth. But there were times when stuff was coming out of people's mouths, and you couldn't hear the main characters talking. So, they were like, Cut! Do it again! Right? So, the idea was for us to be moving. and dancing to no beat, right? You had to keep the beat in your head. So, so what they did was they played the music and they played it and then they cut it and then that's when the actors started acting and doing their stuff. I mean, but you had to keep the beat and it
Mandy: Oh. Oh
Jevon: it was like, don't look at anyone
Mandy: No.
Jevon: because you're gonna lose the beat. Yeah, yeah, it was, it was fun, [00:33:00] but if you've never been on set before, it would have been hard for you to know what to do.
Mandy: yeah, I can imagine.
Jevon: until this day, a lot of the participants that were in that, they're still in new shows. Like, Law Order was calling me, The Equalizer, yeah, yeah, I've had a lot of other shows calling me to, to be on set. I, I was on two, but once I moved down here, I couldn't go back to New York. So it oh my goodness. I missed so many opportunities, but it's okay. I Yeah,
Mandy: Texas. Yes, that,
Jevon: no, no, no, it's
Mandy: that, that could be a new motto for Texas, the land of missed opportunities, I think. Well, speaking of that I want to hear about what you're doing now with Elevated Access, because it is such a needed resource and it seems like it almost might be like the, the gathering of, of so many things that you've already been doing.
So, [00:34:00] so tell us about that.
Jevon: Yes. Yes, but but I also want to just change the whole thought of Texas being missed opportunities.
Mandy: Okay.
Jevon: so Justin Baldoni did a movie here in Texas called The Senior and I was in that
Mandy: Oh, look at you. You've got like, okay, do you have an IMDb page? Should we be the, okay, I will be linking to that. All right.
Jevon: Yes do you know Trans in Trumpland? Did you watch that?
Mandy: I don't think so.
Jevon: So, Trans in Trumpland Tony, I'mma say Tony Z because his last name is like Zoforashan. He's from Greece. He is the director of Trans in Trumpland, and I was also a part of that in the background.
Mandy: Okay. Well, I'm just going to have to go on your page and like, watch all of your stuff. So,
Jevon: Yes. Yes.
Mandy: binge fest of all of Jevon's work.
Jevon: Yeah, well, I'm still, I'm still working on putting some stuff in there, but it's, it's, [00:35:00] it's there. It's going, but as far as Elevated Access, I love working here. It is amazing. It is the most affirming place to work.
We're a brand new organization, so funny thing is, I, I helped them a year ago start it. The organization and then I was told do I know anyone that wants to be in this position so we made the position, the Assistant Director of Gender-Affirming Care and I'm sending it out to everyone, to everybody I know and then I get a phone call, Jevon, you didn't apply for this position and I'm like, but, but I helped you guys, you know.
Make, make it, like, I can apply for it, and they were like, yes, so I was like, okay, so I applied for it, I did three interviews, I, [00:36:00] I met, I met everyone, and then they called me and told me that I got the job, and I was like, wait, what? And they were like, well, look, we're going to send you the offer letter and then you let us know. So, when they sent me the offer letter, I was like, yes, definitely,
Mandy: Awesome. Okay. So for people who don't know what Elevated Access is, can you give a description of this organization?
Jevon: the easiest that I can put it. So, we assist anyone that needs support in travel for gender-affirming care and abortions. Travel, I have to be specific about it, right? So, let's say your state does not allow you to have abortions and they don't allow you to have any type of gender-affirming surgery or get hormones. We will get [00:37:00] you from your state to where you want to go. To have your doctor's appointment and get you back home. That's what we do.
Mandy: when I tell people about Elevated Access, they're like, what? This is incredible because there is such a barrier, so many barriers to getting gender-affirming care right now, especially in states that have banned gender-affirming medical care for adolescents, for minors. And so I just in, in my own circle, know so many people who, when you're trying to get care for your kids, the three choices are stay, and hope they make it to 18, stay and try to go out of state, or leave. And the, all of those are, are horrible choices. And moving is not possible for everyone. It is very traumatic for a family to uproot themselves and to find a new job. And it's very expensive and [00:38:00] even getting out of state Obviously, you know, pretty much every state in the South has a gender-affirming care ban now. So if you are, say, in Louisiana and you're trying to get care somewhere, you have to hop over a few states to even get there. So having the travel on an airplane is such a needed resource.
Jevon: So we have 500 pilots
Mandy: What?
Mandy: I thought it was like three people. Okay.
Jevon: Nope. 500 pilots that use their private planes or access to whatever planes that they have to transport people to where they have to go. And we also have relocated some people that moved out of their state to a safe space. We've also taken parents. So, so when they relocate, you know, how one parent stays behind and the other parent goes,
Mandy: Sometimes.
Jevon: been [00:39:00] taking, we've been taking a parent back and forth and back and forth to be with their family. Yeah, yeah, we've, we've also flown some people for emergency purposes. And yeah, we, we assist, right?
Mandy: Mm.
Jevon: We're finally realizing, because we knew it, but now we're realizing this, gender-affirming care looks different for each person.
Mandy: Mm hmm.
Jevon: right? Gender-affirming care can be going to court to get your name change.
Mandy: Ah, yes.
Jevon: right?
Mandy: So not always medical. Thank you for, for correcting me on that. Thank you. So say maybe if someone needed to go to a different state to get their birth certificate changed, would that be an example? Okay. like I know in Texas people tend to go to a certain county to get their name and gender marker changed because that particular county tends to be a little easier [00:40:00] and while it may be within an easy drive for some, well, cause it's Texas, it could be a two day drive for others.
Jevon: And we will fly them. Yes, we will.
Mandy: That is so good to know. So how do people plug in? Like if there was a parent who said, I need to get my kid out of state to get care or to change a birth certificate or whatever, do they just call up Elevated Access? Do they have to go through another organization? How does that work?
Jevon: So, they can go to our website and on our website it'll say “how can we assist you?” And you'll just click the link and it'll go to our JOT form. And you can help us by volunteering if you want. We can help you. If you need gender-affirming care, you click that link. If you need an abortion, you click that link, and there's other links to click to assist you with wherever you are, right?
And [00:41:00] for those that need lodging and car service and whatever else, we partner with many organizations that help us. So many different areas.
Mandy: yeah. I love this network. It's, someone said it was the Underground Railroad and I'm like, yes. And since
Jevon: underground, but it's up above.
Mandy: in the sky
Jevon: Yes.
Mandy: And it's not quite so secret, I guess.
Jevon: Planes, trains, and automobiles.
Mandy: There you go. And I do, I would imagine that's very deliberate language. Like you said to talk about that you assist with travel. I would imagine the words not to use would be like facilitating care. Whatever is in the laws so that, Oh, that's good to know. Well, I'll for sure put all that information in the show notes. So if anybody has a need for those services or wants to volunteer or donate or, or that kind of thing, then we'll put that in there.
Okay. Oh my gosh, I could talk [00:42:00] to you all day. And there's so many things that we have not talked about, but I want to be respectful of your time. Where can people go if they want to find you or where do you want to send people? What are you promoting right now? If there's anything coming up on your horizon besides gosh, all of your projects anything in particular that you want to, you want to shout out about?
Jevon: Yes, so I am a new member of FLUX, which is an affinity group of AHF, which is the AIDS Healthcare Foundation.
Mandy: Oh yeah.
Jevon: so Houston is getting their Flux chapter and I am one of the chapter members here, so I'm excited about that. We're, we're gonna find out what the trans community needs here in Houston.
So, we're having a community advisory meetup just to see, you know, hey, what, what's needed? How can we assist [00:43:00] with what's already happening here in Houston for the trans community? Where do you need help? What can we do?
I'm really right now focusing on Elevated Access and the kids so you, you can find me online, any social media, Jevon Martin, J E V O N M A R T I N, I am Jevon.
I am going to start my video, vlog, back up again on YouTube, I had one for many years, and I just stopped because I had someone get sick on live, like literally live, people were watching, and she threw up, right, like on live, right, so, yeah, yeah, so I kinda was like, I don't want to do this anymore.
Mandy: I'm sure that affected your viewership a little.
Jevon: So, that was one of the last things I've done, and I think, I think it's been about three years ago, two, three years ago. [00:44:00] So, since then, I've been having video meetups. I'll record it with my phone and then edit it and put it up there. Because I didn't want to do that anymore. That was triggering.
Yeah. For the both of us. Yeah, but I am going to start it again because people have been asking me, Hey, Jevon, what's going on? And they miss conversations with Jevon.
Mandy: Yeah. Well,
Jevon: it was. Conversation.
Mandy: Well, cause you have about a hundred thousand things that you're doing and having, This J O B job that, yeah, that I'm just to keep up with what's going on. We need that vlog. So you better start it again. So I'm going to be watching for it. Okay. So listeners, if you want to show gratitude for Jevon and all of the things that he does, then please consider donating to one of the causes that he is involved with: Elevated Access, Monica Roberts Resource Center, Princess Janae Place. and the Flux chapter of The [00:45:00] AIDS Houston Foundation which or Healthcare Foundation, excuse me. Is that correct? Okay.
Jevon: A H F.
Mandy: I was looking at that acronym.
And I'll make sure to have all that in the show notes. So that is a great way to say thank you to Jevon. So
Jevon: But on a personal level, I would like to say if anyone would like to help my family. And myself because we do care for my niece’s six kids, and I have my grandson. So now we have seven kids and a little bit about my wife: she is no longer able to work because she goes to dialysis now three times a week. She needs a kidney. We only have one paycheck, so we need a Ford Transit or a larger car so that we can get around town together and not separately. So we do have a GoFundMe and yeah, so you can just search for my name and the GoFundMe should pop up. Also, the Princess Janae place will pop up, but,
Mandy: [00:46:00] Oh, good.
Jevon: yeah.
But I'd rather people just, if they want to help. My family and I get around in one car, that would be grateful. Yes.
Mandy: Well, I will get that address from you and then we'll, we'll for sure put it on the show notes as well.
Jevon: And if you can just in there, so the Monica Roberts Resource Center, I definitely need help with that. I need volunteers, supporters so we need help with the resources. So I'm gathering all the resources for, for Houston, for other states. And so what we're going to put up is a map.
And then people can just click on the map and get the resources that they need. So we need information, we need people to help gather the information. And, yeah,
Mandy: That is good to know. I'll put a little note about that. So people know what, what kind of stuff you're looking for and for the resource center. Well, good. Okay. Well, until next time, Jevon, I'll talk to you soon.
Jevon: Oh, thank you so much, Mandy. Have a blessed [00:47:00] day.
Mandy: Thank you. You too.