Tea Party #17 ~ TRANS• in every issue

Toys, Robert Fuentes larger version

Editor's Letter | Esther Lee

Back in Jananuary,shortly after beginning my position with Tea Party, I was lucky enough to invite a team of four editors—Courtney, Oscar, Kim and Shannon—to join in. We learned that each of us had been drawn to the Bay Area for different reasons (for school, love, employment, or for a diverse community). Though our interests were overlapping, our backgrounds were unique—whether that meant being born in Ecuador, growing up in LA, working in the women’s healthcare

industry, or teaching in China—and as the new editorial team, we brainstormed over themes for the next Tea Party issue. We considered Crossing and Retaining Wonder. We deliberated over a Food or Women-themed issue, as well as a memory-related theme but, ultimately, we decided that none of those felt quite right.

During this time each of us had been going through various changes in our lives—from shifting careers, to acclimating

to married life, adjusting to school, to coping with the loss of a loved one. As for myself, I’d been feeling like a transplant in the multicultural mecca of the Bay Area. Upon moving to San Francisco two years ago, I had finished up a three-year stint of graduate school, left behind a six-year failed relationship (and dilettante attempts of singing in bands), and defected from my upbringing in North Florida where my

[C]orean American family continually experienced

racial discrimination.

With the magazine and its editors undergoing such transitions, it’s not surprising that the spirit of our ideas kept returning to the notion of crossroads and the in-between. We eventually decided on the theme, TRANS•, which could address states of “beyond, through, on or to the other side, into another state or place, change, and the opposite side of.” We believed TRANS• begged to be explored.

In our TRANS• issue, you’ll find out how writing has been transformative for veterans and writer Maxine Hong Kingston. Art by Michael Arcega highlights his transnational background, which infuses his prankish and pun-based works. Learn why transgender choreographer, Sean Dorsey, believes modern dance—and San Francisco—still haven’t fully embraced more gender expressions on stage, and learn what he’s doing about it. Nora Barrows-Friedman reminds us of the translucence of the human spirit through images of occupied Palestine. Scott Stevens tells us about his life’s transitions, from living on the streets of Brooklyn to what inspired him to become a tenant representative. Anne Visser Ney recounts her transmarine voyage aboard a US navy ship and then salsa dancing in Israel. After visiting a San Joaquin Valley farm, editor Kim Vo reflects on the transmigrant lives of farm workers. And Felix Lucero, a San Quentin inmate, shares what happens when he is transferred to a hospital outside of prison walls.

Don’t miss the poetry or fiction works either, such as the poems by Martín Espada, which transcreate the possibilities of a republic of poetry through verse and music, or the short story, “Transgenred,” by Jenn Scheck-Kahn, which playfully riffs on genre and gender roles. And be sure to check out François Vigneault’s Transformer comic, “Dear Diary, It’s Me, Starscream” and “Tea Transfusions” by Debbie Yoon, as well as the “Tea Party Translation Project,” which features transmedia art and writing by a dozen contributors.

On behalf of the Tea Party editors, designers and staff, I hope the issue offers the chance to interpret TRANS• for yourself, to understand TRANS• in a new way, and to see your community in a more expansive light.

Esther Lee
Editor-in-Chief

P.S. Even our cover images by Robert Fuentes and team photo by Candace L.T. Ho takes place near trains or include modes of transportation—yes, very TRANS•!