Digital Transgender Archive

Interview with Jay Corprew

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An interview with Jay Corprew, a Black trans man, activist, poet, and mentor based in Virginia Beach, Virginia. At the time of this interview, he was the Director of Organizing for the Transgender Assistance Program of Virginia (TAP Virginia,) an organization that provides financial support and community for transgender adults in Virginia. He also solely facilitated the Queer and Trans People of Color peer support group at the LGBT Life Center in Norfolk, Virginia, and co-facilitated the Transmasculine peer support group. In this oral history interview, Corprew discusses his upbringing and experiences of housing and financial instability, his time as a board member of TAP Virginia, the organization's mission, day-to-day operations, and importance to local transgender adults experiencing homelessness, the need for trans and LGBTQ organizations led by Black and Brown trans people, and the vital importance of mutual aid networks and community care for Black trans people. Additionally, he discusses his experience of being first a client of TAP Virginia before becoming a board member and key member of the organization, the impact of the summer's street uprisings in the Hampton Roads area, the need for increased visibility, awareness, and acceptance of trans people, and the paradox of increased visibility coinciding with the worsening struggles faced by Black and Brown trans people.

Item Information:

Identifier
bv73c077q
Collection
Oral Histories with People of Color
Institution
Jean-Nickolaus Tretter Collection, University of Minnesota
Creator(s)
Corprew, Jay
Contributor(s)
Beam, Myrl
Billund-Phibbs, Myra
Publisher
University of Minnesota Minneapolis Libraries
Date Created
Jul. 16, 2020
Genre
Oral Histories
Transcriptions
Subject(s)
LGBT Life Center
Organizing for the Transgender Assistance Program of Virginia
Places
Virginia > City of Norfolk > Norfolk
Virginia > Virginia Beach
Topic(s)
Black transgender people
Homelessness
LGBTQ+ support groups
LGBTQ+ unhoused people
LGBTQ+ visibility
Queer people of color
Trans men
Transgender authors
Transgender people of color
Transgender political activists
Transmasculine people
Resource Type
Moving image
Text
Language
English
Rights
Copyright undetermined
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