Transgender Operations on Illegal Aliens That Are In Prison

In a lecture performance in conversation with her video installation included in the exhibition, Wesleigh Gates traces the historical conjunctures between transfeminine life and the figure of the extraterrestrial. The performance juxtaposes historical trans activists Angela Douglas and Marsha P. Johnson with contemporary right-wing politicians and pundits, exploring how both have found meaning in connecting trans womanhood to alien beings. Gates particularly highlights the imbrication of trans women and UFOs with carceral politics in the United States, opening towards vectors of inter- (and perhaps more importantly, intra-)planetary solidarity in the face of regimes of security, surveillance, and control.

Hold Each Other's Hands is co-presented by One Institute and OXY ARTS as a part of One Institute’s Circa: Queer Histories Festival. You can view the full schedule of CIRCA events here: https://www.oneinstitute.org/circa/