Who are we?  Mahu defined     |        Aunty Anita's Bay Area        


Welcome to
Bay Area  Multi-Cultural Transgender Page
hosted by Aunty Anita, Ambassador of Aloha

 
Links
www.tgsf.org    
 Asian Pacific Islander Wellness Center
Bienestar  HIV Center for Hispanics
Transgender.org  
Transgender Law Center     
 University of California SF GLBT Links  
San Francisco Gay and Lesbian Alliance  
 San Francisco Transgender Team  
Community Health Partnership
deFrank Center
GLOBE in Alameda       
Trikone.org
JLM Photography 
 The Glades Project
Law Foundation.org
  Reel Freedom   
  The Lighthouse Socal Transcom.org
  Diversity Center   Pro Latino.org
  Classic Curves International   Song That. Radio
  Hawaii Scene.com   Asian & Pacific Islander Health Forum


Bay Area Gallery

            

        Eka & Aunty Anita at Transfigurations Opening                      Utopia San Francisco                          Connie Florez, The Glades Project

              

                 San Francisco Pride                                      Ladies of Passion at SF Pride                                  Trantasia Premier 

        

                 Danielle's Wedding                                          Two-Spirit fashion show                                 TG Cotillion 2006   

                     

          Aunty Anita                                         SF Coronation 2006                                                   Clautte                         DeeDee & Emperor Michael

                                

                        Esha, Eka, Dayna                                                       SF Coronation 2006                                                 Empress Kris      

              

             Savanna                                 Together in Mexico                                          Melenie           Tatiana          Kieva                Girls of San Francisco

                                                                                                                                             Passion



                Jerry  Val  Lacie                                                    Ladies of Transpowerment                                        Gala in San Jose

               

            Claudia and D'Anne                                         Larry Boy          Kieva                             Josh & Dani                               Dani & Anita  

 
 © Jana Marcus 2006. All Rights Reserved.  From the documentary "Transfigurations.
For decades, the mahuwahine have been sex workers in Hawaii.

32 years ago, when I transitioned in Hawaii, there were no services or support organizations for the mahuwahine (male-to-females).  I came from an upper-middle class family of social standing and brought shame upon them.  So, at 21 I left and became a sex worker. More often than not, the sex industry was the only road available to trans girls back then. In the 1960s and early 70's it was against the law to cross-dress, so the "T" girls were forced to wear buttons that read "I am a boy," and were only allowed to work in a four block radius in downtown Honolulu. If you were caught without a button you were beaten by the cops and thrown in jail.  This is how it was‹no one cared about us.

At 25, after my surgery, I started presenting myself as a biological woman; no one knew about my past history. I had no marketable skills so I made money performing in burlesque, working around the country and overseas as a Vegas headliner. It was fun dressing-up every night and being glamorous I was a diva but I dreamed of a different life for myself. I wanted to be married and live as a straight woman, but I didn¹t know how to make that happen and I didn¹t believe I had any skills to pull myself out of the adult industry. I met a man, when I was stripping, who worshipped the ground I walked on. When he asked me to marry him I decided not to tell him I was trans. At the time I thought I was making the right decision, and I would take my secret to the grave. I carried that burden for 17 years.

Each stage of my life has been about lessons learned. This year I decided to come out to my husband and I¹m fortunate that he loves me unconditionally and supports the confidant woman I am today. I¹m in a stage of my life now where it isn¹t all about me anymore I want to help others. My new quest is to educate, as few working girls are strong enough to get past a life filled with substance abuse, beatings, and possibly contracting HIV. I was lucky I came out of it alive. My dreams have come true and I try to teach the girls that they don¹t have to be on the streets to use their brains and get an education. Those sisters who were beaten by the cops, had beer bottles thrown at them, and were murdered they paved the road that we walk on now. We can all have a better life today. With the spirit of my sister mahuwahines speaking through me, I am now here to help and I¹m not hiding anymore.  
Ha`a he`o I ka nani mahuwahine e` mahulani *
Aunty Anita, 52

*The beauty of pride is to share with you, brothers and sisters.
     Bio
 Island born native Hawaiian, multi ethnic raised on the Island of Maui. At the age of 6 my family moved to Honolulu, Island of Oahu settling into the Aiea community. For most of those years it was life as a closet mahu. Finally, at the age of 21, realized I am a mahuwahine and started a new life. At that time the only support I received was with my 'Family' at the House of Sei. This was a wonderful time. Filled with good and bad times. However, it did not matter as we were a 'family' (Transgendered sisters). At the age of 24 I made the move to Seattle and the mainland. I worked as a topless dancer throughout the regional area. A year later I had my SRS in Trinidad, Colorado under the skillfull hands of Dr. Stanley Biber.

I continued to dance around the country as a Headliner Burlesque Stripper/       Entertainer under stage name of KONA THE HAWAIIAN AMAZON and eventually relocated to Anchorage, Alaska. It was my home for many years. My husband and I met in Alaska, have spent the past 16 years together. I retired from dancing and began a career in retail, working my way up to a Management position. I have worked for a number of major retail companies in leadership from 10 to100 plus employees in Alaska,and California. Currently my vocation is in the Business Management field. My                                                      avocation brings me to  the area of assisting the transgender non profit groups in the San Francisco                                                      Bay area where I currently  live.

                                   





Articles and Postings
                Sensitivity Training Power Point Presentation       My Two Mothers    Gone Fishing      Tropical Trannie

Scholarship Fund for Transgender Youth
Please forward to anyone or any lists you think may be interested. Thank you!
Greetings Friends,
As most of you know I’ve been working at Larkin Street Youth Services for the past 3 years.  Larkin Street is a non-profit agency in San Francisco that supports homeless youth in receiving the care, resources and attention required to generate stability in their life and overcome the factors propagating their cycles of homelessness, poverty and trauma.  It is a highly effective agency that conducts its life changing work through the financial assistance of generous, compassionate people like yourselves.   
I’ve been inspired to join the fundraising cause through the unique relationships I have forged with our youth, and witnessing first hand the difficulties they face in getting off the streets permanently.  I have bought some new running shoes and will be running more than I’ve ever run before.  I will be training for and racing in the San Francisco Half-Marathon in July and am seeking your sponsorship to ease the pain of running up some very steep hills, to continue the great work done by Larkin Street and to begin something exciting and new for our most vulnerable youth.   
Specifically, I am running to raise funds for the creation of a Scholarship Fund for Transgender Youth.  Transgender youth are a segment of our population who are most at risk for the worst conditions this society has to offer: survival sex work, drug abuse, homelessness, jail, infectious diseases, rape and murder.
According to Riki Wilchins, Executive Director of the Gender Public Advocacy Coalition (GenderPAC), “Gender non-conforming young people – who have often been shut out of employment, housing, and safe environments because of their gender identity or expression – are dying at a rate of about one every three months.”
During these past few years I have met many brave youth, especially transgender youth, who are struggling to overcome societal and institutionalized prejudice, internalized shame, abuse and addictions, to make a better world for themselves; one that does not place their life in danger on a daily basis and cause them to become just another statistic.
I know many of you give back to your communities in one form or another, but here’s a chance to be a part of something tangible and innovative. This is the first time I've asked friends for donations but it's for a highly worthy cause. So please join me in creating this Scholarship Fund that will provide support to a young person working hard to alter their life course; from one of pain and sadness to one of dignified self-realization and salubrious sustainability!
Please go to:   www.active.com/ donate/teamlarki nstreet/chandras
or you can send me a check made out to Larkin Street Youth Services with my name (Chandra Sivakumar) in the memo section, to : 720 Fell, #8, San Francisco , CA 94117
Many thanks!  Be well and
Hula Girl Productions
a Glade Project Update  Glade Project.doc
Connie M. Florez - Director/Producer
Connie is the founder and CEO of Hula Girl Productions, the production company currently working on The Glades Project. Connie produced the feature documentary, Ke Kulana He Mahu: Remembering A Sense Of Place, which premiered at the Washington D.C. Asian Pacific American Film Festival in October of 2001 at the Smithsonian Institute. It was a sellout favorite at both The Hawaii International Film Festival in 2001 and The San Francisco International Asian American Film Festival in 2002. The National Endowment for the Arts (NEA) is currently utilizing Ke Kulana He Mahu as part of their Civil Rights Program curriculum training. The film was also a recipient of the 2002 Frameline/Horizons Film and Video Completion Fund Award; Astraea Lesbian Action Fund for Justice. In June of 2003 Ke Kulana He Mahu was broadcast by WNET in New York (PBS).

She was Executive Producer for the award winning short, Constructions, which was juried the First Place award winner and Audience Award winner in the short documentary category at the First Annual QSFA 2000 (sponsored by Planet Out/IFilm). Constructions also received recognition among the Best Films of 2001 (short film category) at the Sapphos Movie Awards (Girlfriends Magazine) and the Adam Baran Award for best short film 2001. It received distribution by the National Asian American Telecommunications Association-NAATA (A PBS National Minority Consortia).

Connie’s most recent works include the following: work as the Director/Producer/Writer of Ho’oponopono, a short film, completed entirely in Hawai`i; work as a Producer/Assistant Director of Ka ‘Upena Kiloi, a short film funded by Pacific Islanders in Communications-PIC. Both films are currently in post-production. Other work experience includes work as a 2nd2nd Assistant Director for The Fishbowl Project, directed by the late, Kayo Hatta, scheduled to air on National Public Broadcast & PBS Hawai`i during the spring of 2006. Other recent works include pre-production manager for the U.K. feature film titled, The Killing of John Lennon in 2005.
 

 

 





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