We know it’s a particularly rough time to be a trans, nonbinary, Two Spirit young person in the U.S., especially for our Indigenous trans youth who face specific challenges as a result of their intersectional identities. As anti-trans lawmakers continue to debate your right to play sports and access medical care on the national stage, we are also witnessing this fearmongering and spread of misinformation play out on social media, a place where many of us go to seek content that sparks joy.
In 2023, GJLP and TLC launched the Trans Joy Zine, a zine dedicated to the joy and passions of trans youth across the country. Last year, we continued this project with the Black Trans Joy Zine. This year, we are continuing the zine with a new edition: The Two Spirit Joy Zine!
We want to interrupt the cycle of doom and gloom we’ve seen on social media these past few years by curating an intentional collection of joyful, uplifting content created by Indigenous trans, nonbinary, Two Spirit youth artists! That’s why we’re inviting you to submit to the Two Spirit Joy Zine!
This zine will be primarily housed digitally on GJLP’s website – which means you have a ton of liberty in terms of the type of content to submit.
Spoken word poetry about the joys of being Indigenous and trans? Great! A video meditation to help ground Two Spirit people in their bodies? Yes! Submissions can be video, audio, photo, painting, drawing, digital illustration, poetry, short-form writing, or anything else you can imagine. The only restriction is that your submission needs to be able to be uploaded to social media in some way, whether as a static post or a reel. GJLP has shared some content requirements here on how to do that.
To submit your work, please fill out this form. Feel free to send in as many submissions as you like (within reason!) Make sure to set sharing permissions for your submission to public so our team can view and download it.
Submissions are due by Saturday, March 1st. If your submission is selected, you will be contacted by Monday, March 10th- Selected artists will be paid $250.
Questions or concerns? Feel free to contact us at gplatek@gsanetwork.org. We can’t wait to see your creativity and joy shine in your submissions!
Submission Form
*This zine was initially called the Indigenous Trans Joy Zine. In keeping with our current attention to language, we have decided to change the name to the Two Spirit Joy Zine. We want to acknowledge the cultural understanding tied to a term that holds space for the existence of multitudes and vastness of identity and expression, while also knowing it has a unique history and perspectives. We hope to continue to provide ways to both decolonize our language and have spaces for youth to be seen as their authentic selves.