KNOXVILLE, Tenn. — It costs around $230 for a transgender person to change their name in East Tennessee. The cost can be prohibitive for people struggling to buy food or pay debt, so they may need to live with a name they don't identify with.
It takes its toll on their happiness. For many transgender people across East Tennessee, the cost of a name change can be a barrier to their joy. Joslynn Fish, a community organizer and owner of the South Press coffee shop, is working to help as many people as possible find joy in their lives — including through name changes.
She helped start the Trans People are Magic Cabaret, an effort to raise money and fund name changes for people across the region. Through it, people can reach out and ask for scholarships to get their names legally changed in East Tennessee.
"It started with the very first employee that I ever hired — a young trans man who, honestly, I just didn't want to know his 'deadname.' I wanted to not have to ever have that exchange with him," said Fish. "When I made the decision to hire him the first thing we did, and he wanted me to go with him, we went down to the City County Building and I just paid for his name to be changed."
A "deadname" is usually the name that a person was given at birth. As a transgender person transitions, they may not identify with the name anymore and may instead start using a different one. Using a transgender person's "deadname" may expose them to unsafe experiences and harm their mental health, according to the National Institutes of Health.
Fish, a transgender person herself, said she wanted to help make people around her feel the same kind of trans joy that she was able to feel as she transitioned. She said at first, she would help people get legal name changes almost as a kind of sign-on bonus for employees at her coffee shop, South Press.
Later, the Trans People are Magic Cabaret came about and began helping both fund name changes while also giving drag performers a chance to perform. As of June 6, it has its own logo and has helped fund around 90 name changes. The cabaret performed on Thursday for people 18 years old or older, raising money for eight name changes.
"There was something beautiful about trans people empowering other trans people to get their name changed, which is this huge turning point," she said.
The effort also came about from her experience working at a previous restaurant, which refused to give her new aprons until her name was legally changed.
"It was this hindrance of me moving forward with my transition, with me moving forward with my life," she said. "A large part of our demographic is college kids. Those folks are getting an education, they're getting ready to graduate, they're getting certificates and licensure — to be able to give them the gift of being able to step into their profession with their chosen name, and not this name that doesn't really align with their identity, is such a gift."
She said Trans People are Magic has helped people legally change their names in Sevier County, Hamblen County, Blount County and other East Tennessee counties. Anyone who wants help changing their name through Trans People are Magic can reach out online.
"As I learn how to navigate those and make allies within those offices, we've been able to expand those services more and more," Fish said.