Blogs

‘A Posi+ive Life’ – a conversation with Johnny Autin Hello, My name is Johnny. I am 35 and I live in Birmingham. I am a dance artist, a choreographer/ creative director and run a touring dance theatre company. On Tuesday 1st of December, it is World AIDS Day, a day dedicated to raising awareness (and […]

So, you may well ask – Alexus, what on earth is Trans Day of Remembrance, and why should we care about it? Good question, glad you asked it. A bit of history then. Trans Day of Remembrance, or TDoR was started in 1999 by trans advocate Gwendolyne Ann Smith, as a vigil to honour the […]

I was born to West Indian parents in Birmingham 1967, and from the age of five to 15 I was raised by my father and stepmother. My relationship with my stepmother was very turbulent from day one.  One of my earliest memories is of her calling me a “girl’s blouse” or a “puff” due to […]

I have been raised in a culture where I was constantly reminded of how fair my brown skin was; and how lighter skin was more desirable than darker skin. I still remember the coarse feeling of my grandmother trying to rub my face with her chunni (a long Indian head scarf). It one of my […]

Carl Marshall, the first facilitator of the Married Men’s Group, talks about the group and its history.   How did the group come about? Well, in 2002, I left my marriage of 20 years as I realised that I was gay. I was very distressed, disoriented, and in need of support, and a friend directed […]