Tuesday, April 18 was National Transgender HIV Testing Day (NTHTD). National trans testing day was created to recognize the importance of routine HIV testing, status awareness and continued focus on HIV prevention and treatment efforts among transgender people. This awareness day began in 2016 and continues to be organized by the Center of Excellence for Transgender Health.

On the podcast we have two transgender stars of the LGBTQ+ community here in Maine. The Executive Director of the Maine Transnet Quinn Gormley (she/her), and the former communications director for Equality Maine, and founder, and former executive director of Speak About It, Shane Diamond (he/him). Join us as we discuss LGBTQ+ healthcare woes, statewide policy victories, the power and pitfalls of the new trans visibility, the importance of recognizing non-binary and other gender diverse people, and how to better include trans folks in HIV prevention and care messaging.

Ren Morrill (he/him) - Ren is the host of the Three Letters Podcast. He is a Maine native with a life long passion for HIV. He works for Frannie Peabody Center as a prevention outreach, testing and education specialist. He also serves as the co-chair of Pride Portland’s HIV Advisory Board.

Guests:

Quinn Gormley (she/they) currently serves as the Executive Director of the Maine Transgender Network (MTN). Her work with MTN ranges from community building initiatives, expanding health equity and access across the state, suicide prevention, policy advocacy, and violence prevention. Before MTN, Quinn worked in a variety of community organizing settings, including at the Health Equity Alliance managing a rural HIV testing program and building rural LGBTQ+ communities, and with the Maine People’s Alliance working on economic and health justice issues. Throughout her work, Quinn believes in centering the wellness of marginalized communities, and that the root of power and liberation can be found in communities that embrace their diversity and interdependence. She lives with her husband Ezra and a small menagerie of pets in Mid Coast Maine.

Shane Diamond (he/him/his) is the former Communications Director for EqualityMaine and the founder and former Executive Director of Speak About It. He is an out and proud trans-identified man living in Portland with his partner and his dog, Harvey Chocolate Milk, riding out the Covid quarantine with a sourdough starter, a home yoga practice, and a Netflix queue that is equal parts true crime drama, standup, and drag.
Episode Resources:

Grunt - http://www.grunt.org.au/
My Generation on Youtube - https://youtu.be/J-sceHHpzPo
PrEP4 Trans - https://youtu.be/xqpynKdzJeI
Trans friendly sexual health resources in Maine: Mabel Wadsworth Center, Planned Parenthood, Maine Family Planning