#girlslikeus, the hashtag created by trans activist and writer Janet Mock, has reached its one-year anniversary!
In an interview about #girlslikeus with Loop21.com, Janet explains, "I see it more as a collective than a hashtag. It started from just having conversations with other young trans women about our experiences and about how we label and identify ourselves. Most of them will say, “I just identify myself as a girl.” We may be girls with something extra or girls who have to go through a different path in life, but at the end of the day, we just consider ourselves girls."
#girlslikeus has brought countless trans women into conversation with one another across social media, and has empowered them to tell their own stories apart from the media's stereotyped portrayals. As Janet has pointed out, the voices and concerns of trans women, especially trans women of color, are rarely heard beyond their own communities, and survival in a world with limited resources for trans people often depends upon shared experience.
You can read Janet's full interview about #girlslikeus at Loop21.com, and follow #girlslikeus on Twitter.