She, He, and Then There's Me: Adrian Adams at TEDxOccidentalCollege

Though taken for granted, the ability to express oneself in a public space is the American Dream. Currently, many transgender and gender non-conforming individuals do not have access to this Dream. Adrian explores how we can reconstruct local spaces to provide inclusion for transgender and gender non-conforming individuals. In doing so, Adrian Adams demonstrates the ways in which the Power of Inclusion can reconstruct the American Dream into a localized form that any person can acquire

Adrian Adams is a first year Critical Theory and Social Justice Major. Their area of research focuses how hypersexualization in media influences transphobia and how exotifying women of color particularly affects transgender women of color. During their time at Occidental College, they founded a peer mentorship program for queer and trans* students on-campus called "Lead with Pride". They also served as the Occidental College representative at the 2014 T*Camp, a three day conference for gender questioning, genderqueer, and trans* individuals. In the future, they hope to explore how to apply identity politics (with an intersectional approach) to screenwriting, producing, and public policy.

About TEDx, x = independently organized event

In the spirit of ideas worth spreading, TEDx is a program of local, self-organized events that bring people together to share a TED-like experience. At a TEDx event, TEDTalks video and live speakers combine to spark deep discussion and connection in a small group. These local, self-organized events are branded TEDx, where x = independently organized TED event. The TED Conference provides general guidance for the TEDx program, but individual TEDx events are self-organized.* (*Subject to certain rules and regulations)