Special Guests
Esther Fallick
she/her/hers
Esther Fallick (she/her) is a comedian, singer, and musical theater writer based out of Brooklyn, NY.
She has been written about in Vulture, Autostraddle, Broadway World, and more. Her one woman show, “Esther Updates Her Book” has played NYC venues including 54 Below, Union Hall, and Caveat, and was part of the 2022 New York Comedy Festival. She was also a co-writer on the debut song, “I’m Just Gonna Be Me”, which premiered online in September 2022.
She performs regularly around Brooklyn & Manhattan
Katie Barnes
they.them.theirs
Katie Barnes (they/them/their) is an award winning journalist covering the intersection of sports and gender. As a feature writer at ESPN, Katie has profiled women’s sports superstars like Maya Moore, A’ja Wilson, and Amanda Nunes. They are a leading journalist in the coverage of legislation and policy affecting transgender and intersex athletes. Fair Play is their first book. It was named as a “Must-Read Book of 2023” by Time Magazine. Katie is a 3-time GLAAD award nominee and a 2022 finalist for the Dan Jenkins Medal, a prestigious award honoring outstanding sports journalism. They were named the 2017 Journalist of the Year by NLGJA — The Association of LGBTQ Journalists.
Katie studied American Studies, History, and Russian Studies at St. Olaf College, and Student Affairs in Higher Education at Miami University (OH), and thus believes no degree is prophetic. A retired fanfiction writer, Katie now enjoys writing with their name attached, but wears their fandom as a badge of honor. Katie actually likes cornfields, and thinks there is nothing better than a summer night’s drive through the Indiana countryside. When not transcribing a mountain of interviews, you can usually find Katie hanging out with their wife and cats, Atticus and Zora, attempting to write for fun, or playing video games.
Laura Jane Grace
she/her/hers
Laura Jane Grace is an American musician best known as the founder, lead singer, songwriter, and guitarist of the punk rock band Against Me!. In addition to Against Me!, Grace fronts the band Laura Jane Grace & the Devouring Mothers, a solo project she started in 2016. Grace is notable for being one of the first highly visible punk rock musicians to publicly come out as transgender, which she did in May 2012. She released her debut solo studio album, Stay Alive, in 2020, followed by Hole in My Head in 2024.
In 2015, Grace wrote a column called “Mandatory Happiness” for the Vice Media publication Noisey.
On November 15, 2016, Grace’s memoir Tranny: Confessions Of Punk Rock’s Most Infamous Anarchist Sellout, co-written with Noisey editor Dan Ozzi, was published. Much of the book is based on Grace’s journals, which she had kept since third grade. Grace participated in a 10-part documentary called True Trans where she interviewed “gender variant people from all walks of life” to allow them to tell their stories, in addition to telling hers. In 2015, the show was nominated for an Emmy for New Approaches: Arts, Lifestyle, Culture.
In 2015, Grace worked with Joan Jett and Miley Cyrus to make videos for the Happy Hippie Foundation to raise money for homeless LGBT youth. Laura Jane Grace is currently on a USA Tour.
Mars Wright
he/him/his
Mars Wright is an artist, streetwear designer, activist and entrepreneur. His work touches on the beauty of imperfection and the strength of radical honesty. Through sharing his life vulnerably he hopes to help folks feel less alone. We are all trying our best and he wants to honor that effort. His streetwear brand, Life on Mars, is able to elevate this message and create a tangible representation of the Joy he wants to spread.
His hashtag #TransJoyis Resistance has over 30 million views and he’s shown his designs in runway and gallery shows, a Google mini-documentary, and more.
You can find his work on marswright.com or on instagram and tiktok @mars.wright