Speaker 1: Hey, this is Annie and Samantha, and Antha's definitely never
Speaker 1: told your protection of iHeart Radio and welcome to another
Speaker 1: edition of a Feminist Activists around the World. And you
Speaker 1: know what, I'm not gonna lie as per usual when
Speaker 1: I start speaking on any episodes. It's dark. It's been
Speaker 1: a bleak well, I guess really several years now when
Speaker 1: it comes to what is happening in the marginalized community
Speaker 1: in the world of politics and countries, we thought that
Speaker 1: we're moving forward have been moving backwards at what seems
Speaker 1: to be an alarming rate. Maybe we're just seeing it
Speaker 1: in a fast paced way because it is bill season,
Speaker 1: slash election stuff has happened, and I don't know why,
Speaker 1: but it just seems like it's coming at a very
Speaker 1: fast rate. I don't know about you. Annie. In the
Speaker 1: US alone, there are currently one hundred and thirty anti
Speaker 1: LGBTQ bills and at least one hundred and fifty of
Speaker 1: those are going after the trans community. And this is
Speaker 1: according to the ACLU and the Human Rights Campaign websites.
Speaker 1: And again, I'm trying to get as much updated information,
Speaker 1: but it's really hard to keep up because it is
Speaker 1: changing daily recently, and I think this is why, I mean,
Speaker 1: it's such a dark place. The state of Georgia passed
Speaker 1: and signed SP one forty, which bands certain gender farming
Speaker 1: care for minors or those who are under eighteen, with
Speaker 1: an ad on that they would prosecute any medical professionals
Speaker 1: who violate the band, including taking away licenses and jose
Speaker 1: as a reminder for people who are like, but you know,
Speaker 1: this is about kids, whatever whatnot. We're seeing what's happening
Speaker 1: in Florida and it's not about kids. It's about the
Speaker 1: trans community, so don't lie to yourself. And the anti
Speaker 1: trans bill are still coming, unfortunately. But when it does
Speaker 1: seem like it's so dark and the times are getting bleak,
Speaker 1: there are many who are and have been doing amazing
Speaker 1: work to advocate for the trans community all for the world.
Speaker 1: And today we are talking about one of them, and
Speaker 1: that is an Filled Stewart who yes, their pronouns are
Speaker 1: she heard they them And this is according to their site,
Speaker 1: which also describes themselves as black, queer and transfilm New
Speaker 1: York based storyteller working at the intersection of theater and activism,
Speaker 1: so for that purpose, because a lot of the articles
Speaker 1: referenced them as they them, that's what we're going to
Speaker 1: stick with. So there you go, just so you know. Yeah.
Speaker 1: Originally from Birmingham, Alabama, they would go on to graduate
Speaker 1: from Illinois Wesleyan University with a BFA and music theater
Speaker 1: in twenty fifteen, and then Stuart moved to New York
Speaker 1: where they continued in their passion for theater and performing.
Speaker 1: They have worked in the performance industry for some time now,
Speaker 1: and they are known for working closely with their actors
Speaker 1: and collaborators to create an environment where everyone feels valued
Speaker 1: and heard, as well as seeking to create works that
Speaker 1: are actively anti racist and allow for the voices of
Speaker 1: the oppressed to be heard. In their website, ian Field
Speaker 1: Stewart dot com, they write their work and she are
Speaker 1: dedicated to interrupting the exclusivity of luxury by making things
Speaker 1: like entertainment, nourishment, and self care accessible to the most
Speaker 1: marginalized in their community in a world that is constantly
Speaker 1: traumatizing black bodies. She believes that black, queer and trans
Speaker 1: people should have the space and time to center collective, emotional, physical,
Speaker 1: and sensual pleasure. Which I love that and with their passion,
Speaker 1: they began their work in activism and theater, taking on
Speaker 1: their love for theater and showing it as a way
Speaker 1: to advocate for those in the trans and black community
Speaker 1: by organizing and curating a safe space for the black
Speaker 1: transgender community to be valued as well as cared for.
Speaker 1: In twenty nineteen, they along with their friend Nila Simpson,
Speaker 1: founded the Okra Project and according to their website, the
Speaker 1: Ogre Project is quote a mutual aid collective that seeks
Speaker 1: to support black trans people with a goal of alleviating
Speaker 1: years of the community faces. Throughout programming, we helped a
Speaker 1: redistribute vital resources to our community along our service pillars
Speaker 1: by promoting food, security, safety, and mental health support right
Speaker 1: and in an interview with Black Women Radical, Stewart talked
Speaker 1: about the Ochre Project and they said, the Ochre Project
Speaker 1: actually started on my couch in December of last year.
Speaker 1: I was in a community organizing meeting and I was
Speaker 1: being talked over a lot by a masculine person. While
Speaker 1: I was disengaging from the conversation, the idea for the
Speaker 1: Ochre Project came to my mind. I turned to my
Speaker 1: friend Nila Sampson, who was sitting on the couch with me,
Speaker 1: and said, what do you think about hiring our friend
Speaker 1: Molik Malik, Zadie August who is a chef and the
Speaker 1: creator of Zaddie's Kitchen, and collaborating with Sampson's Black Trans
Speaker 1: Solidarity Fund to go into the homes of black trans
Speaker 1: people who may be experiencing food and security or who
Speaker 1: are not able to go home for the holidays and
Speaker 1: cook for them. Nila and later on Malik agreed and
Speaker 1: were on board with the idea. On Wednesday, December nineteenth,
Speaker 1: twenty nineteen, we launched the Ochre Project with the intention
Speaker 1: and hope of raising one thousand dollars. We dropped it
Speaker 1: at nine am that day. By two pm, we raised
Speaker 1: one thousand dollars and by the evening we raised two thousand.
Speaker 1: That Friday we raised six thousand. Since the launch, I
Speaker 1: can comfortably say we have probably raised thirty thousand to
Speaker 1: forty thousand dollars for our community. We also started creating
Speaker 1: community events. The Ochre Project really has taken on a
Speaker 1: life of its own and become something in the community
Speaker 1: that people can lean on and rely on in the
Speaker 1: community when they need to, and they do a lot
Speaker 1: more and during COVID they did some amazing projects and
Speaker 1: making sure that they were able to really assist the
Speaker 1: black trans community, which we know are often ignored when
Speaker 1: it comes to health crisis in general. So they do
Speaker 1: some amazing things. And yeah, their organization is still thriving.
Speaker 1: After Stuart stepped down from the OPRE Project. It is
Speaker 1: now being led by Gabrielle Iez Susa, who is the
Speaker 1: current executive director and one of Stuart's biggest platforms is
Speaker 1: the knee for the black and trance community in politics
Speaker 1: and in the public eye. They stated in the same
Speaker 1: Black Women's Radical interview, I think the truth is that
Speaker 1: black women, black films, and black non binary film people
Speaker 1: have been at the center from the beginning. It's just
Speaker 1: whether you see us or not, and do you recognize
Speaker 1: us or not. To be honest, whether people do or
Speaker 1: do not see us or recognize us, it's something I'm
Speaker 1: not terribly tied to. I do not feel the need
Speaker 1: to make people see what is there, because the proof
Speaker 1: is in the pudding. You know, we've been here and
Speaker 1: we've been doing the work forever. Is it exhausting and
Speaker 1: frustrating that we have to put up with this and
Speaker 1: put up with people who refuse to acknowledge us. Absolutely,
Speaker 1: There's this really wonderful quote by Tracy Ellis Ross where
Speaker 1: she says, I love being a whole and full woman.
Speaker 1: I am more than my parts, and we all are,
Speaker 1: and we all as women need to continue to change
Speaker 1: our gaze from how we are seeing to how we
Speaker 1: are seeing. In the future of black women's radicalism, black
Speaker 1: women politics, and black film politics, I would like us
Speaker 1: to shift that gaze. Rather than attempting to address how
Speaker 1: we are seeing, we need to address how we are seeing.
Speaker 1: And their works have been seen worldwide, with their work
Speaker 1: featured in New York Times, Out Magazine, Vogue, Forbes, NBC.
Speaker 1: So much more than that. They also have many accolades
Speaker 1: under their name, including being one of the US Fellows
Speaker 1: for Humanity Actions in twenty seventeen, John Lewis Fellowship the
Speaker 1: twenty twenty ones Logo Legends Award, and they were honored
Speaker 1: as the first Lucille Ortel Awards in twenty twenty two.
Speaker 1: So a lot, so a lot, and I'm sure there's
Speaker 1: so much more that we may not have seen and
Speaker 1: continue to happen because they have been featured in so
Speaker 1: many things. I believe. They also worked with Janet Mock
Speaker 1: for Pose Yes the very famous show. So they have
Speaker 1: continued and I think they've won some amazing accolades for
Speaker 1: their performances directorial stuff as well. And if you go
Speaker 1: to their website you can see clips from different shows
Speaker 1: and I believe them performing, so they do some amazing things.
Speaker 1: And I know they have a project in Alabama as well.
Speaker 1: So yeah, to say that they are running and working
Speaker 1: and advocating and fighting is to say the very least. Yes, Yes,
Speaker 1: it's amazing work. And again I'm sure this is someone
Speaker 1: will be checking back in on in the future. In
Speaker 1: the meantime, as always, if there's someone that we should
Speaker 1: be talking about in this segments, you can let us know.
Speaker 1: You can emails at Stephania mom Stuff at iHeartMedia dot com.
Speaker 1: You can find us on Twitter at mom Stuff Podcast,
Speaker 1: or on Instagram and TikTok at Stuff I've Never Told You.
Speaker 1: You can also find us on YouTube. Thanks as always too,
Speaker 1: our super producer Christina, our executive producer Maya d Our,
Speaker 1: contributor Joey. Thank you all, Yes, thank you, and thanks
Speaker 1: to you for listening. Stuff I Never Told resbroduction by
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