International Women’s Day 2025: Celebrating Trans Women

It is once again International Women’s Day! Every year, we at The Geekiary aim to highlight spectacular ladies, whether it be campaigning for certain biopics or spotlighting women who are masters of their craft. Be they fictional or not. This year, given the current political climate in the United States, we’ve chosen to focus on trans women.

Several of us have collaborated on this list of recommendations of media either centered on or created by trans women. From video games to books to television series, this list is just a small sampling of the way our trans sisters have contributed to the pop culture landscape. Some of these are old favorites, while some of them may be new to you! We hope everyone walks away from this post with at least one title they want to check out.

Television

Sense8
Recommended by Jamie

I’m aware I’m probably preaching to the choir with this rec, but on the off chance you’re a fan of our site and you haven’t seen Netflix’s unapologetically queer Sense8, you should close this page right now and go binge it on Netflix. (Well, finish the article, then go and binge it.) From the Wachowski sisters (The Matrix), this show is a masterclass in storytelling and filmmaking, revolving around eight random people across the world who are one day intimately and psychically connected.

While this is at its heart an ensemble show, the emotional core of the first season is definitely Nomi Marks (Jamie Clayton). Her confinement by her family is one of the first problems the cluster comes together to solve, and from then on, it’s Nomi and her fantastic skills that continue getting them out of jams. Nomi’s issues with her family, who were opposed to her transition, are a recurring thing throughout the series, but everything culminates in her and Amanita’s (Freema Agyeman) wedding. It was sadly cancelled after two seasons, but the final “episode” (basically a movie), ends with a satisfying, almost fairytale conclusion.

A Virtuous Business
Recommended by Bekah Starshine

This Korean comedy-drama on Netflix is based on the 2016 British show Brief Encounters, loosely inspired by Jacqueline Gold’s memoir Good Vibrations. Written by Choi Bo-Rim, it follows four rural women in 1992 South Korea who decide to sell sex toys and lingerie at home parties. The show highlights the difficulties of marriage, classism and poverty in rural Korea, gossip, the then-taboo of being a single mother, sexism, and victim blaming but also shares the warmth of female friendships and how important it is to have one another’s backs. I laughed, I cried, I threw things at my TV. It’s a limited series currently available on Netflix. 10/10, no notes, though remember while watching it, it’s set during a time when women were simply expected to keep house so there are quite a bit of difficult scenes.

Pose
Recommended by Farid

While not without storytelling faults, I don’t think one can deny the impact a show like Pose has had when it came to putting queer talent, especially PoC talent from the transgender community, on TV in a major way, both behind the camera and onscreen. Opening in 1987, the narrative focused on the queer community dealing with the AIDS crisis while shining a light on the continued struggles of the transgender community. 

With what’s currently happening in the political landscape concerning trans rights, Pose serves as a reminder of how said group of people (particularly transgender women) have always been on the forefront to fight for overall queer acceptance in society even though they themselves have faced ridicule and ostracization by others in the queer community. 

Remember, there is no LGB without the T. Trans rights are human rights. Once the homophobes and anti-queer politicians are done with the T, they will come for the rest. So, stay strong. Stay as one community.

23.5
Recommended by Jamie

GMMTV is well-known for its BL series, and there were high hopes for its first GL. I think people were a little disappointed just because expectations were essentially out of this world, but 23.5 is a perfectly charming, enjoyable story about mistaken identities and first love. It’s the reason that last year’s IWD post was about WLW media.

But the reason I’m recommending it isn’t because of the main story, between two high school students fumbling into their first relationship. It’s for the romance between their teachers, Bambam (Golf Kittipat) and Nida (Godji Tachakorn), which was just as sweet. It was also the first onscreen romance between two trans characters, played by trans actresses, in Thai television history. Plus, it’s the fairly rare romance between adult characters, as these shows tend to skew younger.

The Amazing Digital Circus
Recommended by Bradda M.

Pomni, trapped in a computer generated game along with other humans as in-game avatars, becomes distraught when she realizes that she cannot escape this digital circus. The pilot episode (2022) of this ongoing indie animated series raked in critical acclaim and countless views. However, that isn’t the reason why I’m recommending this series. The Amazing Digital Circus provides a balance of humor and suspense and compelling characters. The Amazing Digital Circus is created by Gooseworx.

Movies

I Saw the TV Glow
Recommended by Angie Fielder Sutton

This allegorical horror film absolutely wrecked me (I stil can’t think of the movie without feeling close to tears). It’s on my list of movies that a) are hella good, b) I’m glad I watched, c) I can understand why people were talking about it, and d) I never EVER want to see again unless I am in the right headspace. I call this list my Schindler’s List (you can guess which movie inspired it), and I even have created a Letterboxd list for this. 

I knew going in it was a heavy film, which is part of why I didn’t see it right away {gestures at the world}. Both a love story and a cautionary tale about television shows such as Buffy, the Vampire Slayer and the fandom community that surrounds them, writer/director Jane Schoenbrun (who is transfeminine and non-binary) stated at Sundance that the movie is about “the egg-crack” experience that many trans people have. It helped me gain a better understanding of what the experience might be like to live as transgender.

Books

Zenobia July
Recommended by Jamie

This book was actually one of my very first Pride Reads, all the way back in 2019. It’s a middle grade novel with a trans protagonist, and for any of you with children, it’s a great way to introduce them to the LGBTQ+ community. Not only does it do a fantastic job of explaining gender identity and other queer topics, it has a rainbow cast of characters whose stories are not solely about being queer. Even as an adult, I found it to be an enjoyable read. 

The Road to Kalazad
Recommended by Angie Fielder Sutton

Okay, okay. I’ll be blatantly honest and say up front that a) I have not completely read this book yet, and b) I know the author personally. But hey – with great power and such, yes? And what’s the point of being a geeky journalist if I can’t recommend my friends? The Road to Kalazad is a fantasy book with centaurs, dragons, and gangsters. While I (as mentioned) haven’t read the whole thing yet (my reading has gone rapidly downhill since COVID), this excerpt on Queer Sci Fi shows that it’s funny, sweet, and engaging. I look forward to the time when my focus is better and I can really focus on it.

Wilder Girls
Recommended by Bekah Starshine

A too close for comfort post apocalyptic and body horror YA story, Wilder Girls is the debut novel by queer author Rory Power. It tackles the pain of queer relationships while simultaneously fighting a deadly virus and the effects of global warming. It’s both a commentary on the harm humanity is doing to the earth and also what it means to be a girl while doing what it takes to survive.. by any means necessary.

Video Games

Celeste
Recommended by Walker M.

This heartfelt and challenging platformer has become a staple of trans video games. The game’s themes of anxiety, self-hatred, and internal strife are deeply relatable by themselves. It isn’t surprising that Celeste has resonated with so many trans folks, as Maddy Thorson, one of the developers, came out later as trans, giving a wonderful meaning to the journey for self-acceptance that the game depicts.

Writing/Journalism

Danielle Solzman from Solzy at the Movies
Recommended by Angie Fielder Sutton

I first found Solzman on Twitter as part of an ‘entertainment journalists supporting each other’ kind of thing, and have since followed her onto BlueSky. While I don’t always agree with her thoughts, I find her smart, funny, and clever. Her writing always makes me think, especially when I don’t agree with her. She keeps me on my entertainment journalist toes, and makes me want to be a better writer in return.

Music

SOPHOMORE SLUMP CALLITHUMP
Recommended by Walker M.

Few albums have impacted me as much in recent times as SOPHOMORE SLUMP CALLITHUMP. STOMACH GIRL, a trans woman, forms a very bizarre and captivating sound palette, which she then uses to paint heartfelt odes to loss, despair, heartbreak, and so many other feelings. It’s a rollercoaster, a perfect candidate for my personal list of favorite albums, and an unforgettable experience.

——-

The rights of trans women (and all trans people, but the vitriol tends to focus on trans women in particular) are in serious jeopardy in the United States right now. You can use this guide as a general outline for how to help trans people in day-to-day situations. But right now, in the US, the best thing that you can do is call your representatives and ask them to support trans rights, find local marches and protests in support of trans people, call out transphobia whenever you see it, and donate to organizations who are fighting the good fight. Here is a list of organizations in all 50 states that are fighting anti-trans legislation.

Things are bleak but not entirely hopeless. Just yesterday, trans representatives in the Montana legislature were able to sway enough of the opposition to their side to kill two anti-trans bills that had come up for voting. If it can happen in Montana, it can happen in other states! Remember, activism is like a choir holding a sustained note; the only way that is able to happen is everyone working together, so people can drop out and join in when they need to breathe.

Trans rights are human rights. Don’t let them fight alone.

Author: Jamie Sugah

Jamie has a BA in English with a focus in creative writing from The Ohio State University. She self-published her first novel, The Perils of Long Hair on a Windy Day, which is available through Amazon. She is currently an archivist and lives in New York City with her demon ninja vampire cat. She covers television, books, movies, anime, and conventions in the NYC area.

Twitter

Help support independent journalism. Subscribe to our Patreon.

Copyright © The Geekiary