LaVonna is now pursuing a career in music.
“ Most people do not understand, but as long as you understand who you are and what you are and present yourself with class and elegance then maybe the day will come when they do understand. ”
LaVonna's Story: Reaching Out to Transgender Teens
By Christina Breda Antoniades
She may have been born male, but LaVonna says she has identified as a female for as long as she can remember. And although her family supports her living life as a female, like many other transgender youth LaVonna has had to steer through some difficult times, including several months living homeless in Los Angeles. Hoping her own experience would help her steer others away from trouble, LaVonna worked for a year with Gay and Lesbian Adolescent Social Services (GLASS) providing counseling and outreach services to homeless transgender youth. She has since left GLASS to pursue a career in music, but LaVonna still feels strongly about preserving the rights of homeless youth. We talked to her recently about some of the challenges transgender youth face and how they can overcome them.
Q: First, tell us a little about your background and when you began living life as a female.
A: It wasn't like I made a transition from male to female, because I have always felt female. I felt that way before junior high, but junior high was when I really had the courage to be myself and not hide it. That's when I started taking female hormones. So I was never really a man. I was just a kid who grew up knowing that I was a lady. For a while I was living on the streets, but then I got an apartment and was asked by GLASS to speak on a panel for the rights of homeless youth. They had no idea that I would be a good public speaker, but as it turned out, I was. After that, they hired me to work with homeless youth. It was something that I believed in and wanted to speak about, so I did.
Q: Do you think most people understand what transgender means?
A: Most people do not understand, but as long as you understand who you are and what you are and present yourself with class and elegance then maybe the day will come when they do understand.
Q: What kinds of challenges do the transgender teens you counseled face?
A: First off, they get people saying, "Well you're not real, you're not really a woman and it's not real." But to me, someone who is real is someone who is honest with themselves. So I'm completely real. I'm honest with myself. I'm honest with others. I am a positive woman. Just because one person doesn't know or understand who you are on the inside doesn't mean that's not who you are. So they have to learn to just be who they are. All I can be is the lady I am. I can't be anyone else. I am LaVonna, and no one should expect me to be anyone else. If I were to portray anyone else, that would be false. This is me, it's not an act, it's not pretending. It's who I am. That makes me very real, and it will make others very real, too. So they have to be true and honest with themselves instead of creating a character or conforming to the ideals of others on what a human being should be.
