The Alternative Press: A Look Back at Transvestia

Social movements, people living alternative lifestyles, and any groups with beliefs or practices that hang on the fringe of society are often the voices that make up the alternative press.  Since these groups are often ignored or misrepresented by mainstream press, any form of counterculture movement has had to develop its own way to communicate with its members, and to create a forum for groups to connect with one another. As a result, small and independent publications—including, journals, pamphlets, magazines, newspapers, and more recently zines, social media, and independent online news magazines—are priceless when understanding the history of these groups, movements, and communities. 

The social climate of the 1960s and 1970s saw an explosive growth of small and independent publications. This was the time of the Civil Rights and Black Power Movements, the Gay Rights Movement, the Feminists Movement, and the Anti-War movement. Independent publications representing these groups were developed by special interest organizations, individuals, and student groups on campuses across the country. 

The New York Public Library, recognizing the importance of these publications, has worked to develop an impressive collection of alternative media, not just in print, but electronically as well, so that patrons and researchers can explore these materials from home as well as onsite at the library. One example is the database Independent Voices, where anyone can read issues of Black Unity, a 1970s publication for African-American servicemen and women, or New Directions for Women, a long-running feminists publication.

One such publication is the 1960s independent magazine Transvestia,  which is available through the Archives of Sexuality and Gender databaseTransvestia was started by Virginia Prince in the 1960s for "the needs of those heterosexual persons who have become aware of their 'other side' and seek to express it." Transvestia became a safe space for individuals to tell their own stories without judgment. For example, each issue had the Our Cover Girl  column, which highlighted the story of the cover model. Transvestia was also a space for those new to cross-dressing to be embraced by a like-minded community, such as in the Virgin Views by Virginia  column. Transvestia  even had a space for wives to write about their relationships with their cross-dressing husbands, The Letters from Wives  column is only one example. 

Transvestia, no. 27, 1964

Although, the tone of Transvestia was often light, Prince's magazine nevertheless broke ground on an important discussion in the realm of gender and dress. In almost all cultures—besides a few other factors—outward appearance, including clothing, hair, and adornments such as jewelry, are closely tied to one's gender. However, according to the famed scholar Susan Stryker, "Prince believed that the binary gender system harmed both men and women by alienating them from their full human potential, and she considered cross-dressing to be one means of redressing this perceived social ill." Stryker even attributes the term "transgender" to Prince, although when Prince used the term it did not not have the same meaning as it does today, but referred more to people who lived socially in a role not normally associated with their born gender.

The road to Transvestia was a long and controversial one for Prince. Virginia Prince (born Arnold Loman)  began cross-dressing as a young child. Prince married twice, and visited a hosts of psychiatrists and psychologists to find out the root of her "problem."  Finally, one doctor told her to "stop fighting it," and that there were "thousands of others" like her.  Prince (who had earned a PhD in pharmacology) began to work out her ideas in medical journals, and developed the term femmiphillia, which she preferred over the term transvestite. Soon she started Transvestia, which immediately received pushback from the general public. Prince was even arrested for the crime of "sending obscene material through the post," according to the article Virginia Prince: Pioneer of Transgendering, plead guilty, and was given a sentence of five years probation. However, according to the same source, her lawyer was able to convince the court to include in the probation order a public education mandate about cross-dressing.  

Transvestia, vol. 17, no. 97, 1978, p. 17

​Years later, Prince developed her second publication, The Femme Mirror, also accessible through the Archives of Sexuality and Gender database. Popular in the 1980s and 90s, this publication continued Transvestia's mission of providing an outlet for discussion and concerns for heterosexual transvestites. Prince began this magazine in association with the Tri-Ess organization (Society for the Second Self), a support group for heterosexual men who cross-dressed that functioned as a sorority. The Femme Mirror, like Transvestia,  also promoted awareness, as well as legal and political education. These publications served as an important step for self-acceptance, public acceptance, awareness, and legal protection.

Promoting the First Transgender Law and Employment Conference
Femme Mirror, Spring 1992, p. 30.

For anyone interested in researching or learning more about these publications the archives can be accessed through our Archives of Sexuality and Gender database. For example, explore archival publications like Transvestia,  independent publications like, New Direction for Women, international publications such as Antinorm, and popular publications like The Advocate.  NYPL has much more online, besides magazines. If you are interested in reading Virginia Prince's scholarly articles or others focused on LGBTQ issues,  anyone can access a variety of journals though our LGBT Life database, for example, Columbia Journal of Gender and LawJournal of Bisexualityand the Journal of Gay and Lesbian Psychotherapy. These resources are only a few of the many LGBTQ related e-resources, and it is well worth the time explore some of our databases, such as, LGBT Life Full Text, or Independent voices.

This blog post was researched entirely using NYPL's electronic resources. With more than 500 online research options available, many accessible from home with a library card, we challenge you to go beyond the search engine and dig deeper online with NYPL.

 

ARTICLE RESOURCES

 

Agnes, et al. "Letters from Wives." Transvestia, no. 35, 1965, p. 35+. Archives of Sexuality & Gender, tinyurl.galegroup.com/tinyurl/4vLX44. Accessed 8 June 2017.

Ekins, Richard and Dave King. "Virginia Prince: Transgender Pioneer." International Journal of Transgenderism, vol. 8, no. 4, Oct. 2005, pp. 5-15. EBSCOhost, search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&db=qth&AN=19363399&site=ehost-live.

"The Femme Mirror." Femme Mirror, Fall 1988. Archives of Sexuality & Gender, tinyurl.galegroup.com/tinyurl/4vEyYX. Accessed 7 June 2017.

Ferguson, Michael. "Arresting Dress: Cross Dressing, Law, and Fascination in Nineteenth-Century San Francisco by Clare Sears." Journal of Homosexuality, vol. 63, no. 8, Aug. 2016, pp. 1161-1166. EBSCOhost, doi:10.1080/00918369.2016.1186418.

"First International Conference on Transgender Law and Employment Policy." Femme Mirror, Spring 1992, p. 30. Archives of Sexuality & Gender, tinyurl.galegroup.com/tinyurl/4w9oX3. Accessed 13 June 2017.

Hawkes G. Dressing-up--cross-dressing and sexual dissonance. Journal Of Gender Studies [serial on the Internet]. (1995, Nov), [cited June 16, 2017]; 4(3): 261. Available from: LGBT Life with Full Text.

LeGassé, Joëlle. "Straight Crossdressers." Transgender Tapestry, no. 106, Summer2004, p. 36. EBSCOhost, search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&db=qth&AN=14440447&site=ehost-live.

NEAL A. Homosexuality in the Heartland: Alternative Print Media from 1970s Kansas City. Lucerna [serial on the Internet]. (2016, Jan), [cited June 16, 2017]; 1063-81. Available from: Academic Search Premier.

Paula. "The Femme Mirror." Femme Mirror, Summer 1992, p. 63. Archives of Sexuality & Gender, tinyurl.galegroup.com/tinyurl/4vFAj1. Accessed 7 June 2017.

Stryker S. Transgender Activism. GLBTQ Social Sciences [serial on the Internet]. (2015, Jan), [cited June 16, 2017]; 1-6. Available from: LGBT Life with Full Text.

Stryker S. Transgender. GLBTQ Social Sciences [serial on the Internet]. (2015, Jan), [cited June 16, 2017]; 1-3. Available from: LGBT Life with Full Text.

"‘Ten Commandments for Crossdressers." Femme Mirror, 1989. Archives of Sexuality & Gender, tinyurl.galegroup.com/tinyurl/4vF36X. Accessed 7 June 2017

"Transvestia." Transvestia, no. 27, 1964. Archives of Sexuality & Gender, tinyurl.galegroup.com/tinyurl/4vLSJ0. Accessed 8 June 2017.

"Transvestia." Transvestia, vol. 17, no. 97, 1978, p. 17. Archives of Sexuality & Gender, tinyurl.galegroup.com/tinyurl/4vM3F8. Accessed 8 June 2017.

"Transvestia." Transvestia, vol. 13, no. 76, 1973. Archives of Sexuality & Gender, tinyurl.galegroup.com/tinyurl/4vMAo0. Accessed 8 June 2017.

Virginia. "Virgin Views." Transvestia, no. 35, 1965, p. 72+. Archives of Sexuality & Gender, tinyurl.galegroup.com/tinyurl/4vLVHX. Accessed 8 June 2017.