I started to realize that I was trans about a year and a half ago. Even then, it took years of struggling with my identity to come to this realization. That, in itself, felt like progress—but living authentically remains my greatest challenge. Facing “supportive” people that harbor bias and with a hateful culture at large, I continue every day to try to stay true to myself. My mom tries to be supportive: she lets me wear women’s clothes to school and allows me to buy makeup. But even these things she does with chagrin. She refuses to use my name until it’s legally changed, and she talks with disgust about my friends starting HRT on top of other hateful things. She tries to be supportive. However, seeing her transphobia and refusal to accept me as a girl hurts so much. It feels like she gave up on the issue of appearance but refuses to reflect on her prejudice—it’s a complete betrayal. With the world so online, millions of people idolize and believe in bigoted—and sometimes fascist—influences. This creates groups that run on hatred and misinformation. When Jordan Peterson likens top surgery to Nazi experiments, thousands applaud—this intense hatred is devastating. I personally have been harassed with slurs for expressing myself. Being trans in a society where people advocate hateful ideas and policies that put my rights and safety in jeopardy is horrifying. Still, I overcome this challenge. I’ve accepted that my mom may always hold prejudiced views. I take the support she offers and cherish the love from people who truly accept me. I also push back—through protest, writing, and social media posts—to fight hate and misinformation and to advocate for my rights. Facing these challenges fuels me. It strengthens my resolve that being a trans woman doesn’t make me less. It inspires me to deepen my academic drive. On the AP Language test, I used my experience to support my arguments and foster understanding. My identity informs my voice, and I will always strive to let it shine through. It is my experience with identity and marginalization which fuels my passion for writing. Although my end goal is to eventually write and direct plays that deal with marginalized people in a tasteful and respectful way, a lot of the writing I do now is media analysis essays through the perspective of marginalized people. When I was younger and confused and disillusioned, what helped me through, what helped me understand myself, was reading perspectives both like and unlike mine. I want to do the same for others, for confused teens and for disillusioned people of all ages. I want to help others with my writing, I look at the people who I look up to; Deniz Camp and Tony Kushner, for example, people who have shaped me as a person and reshaped the fundamentals of my life. This is the beauty of writing that ignites my passion. If I can use my experience and knowledge for representation and to possibly change lives, then I have succeeded at what I want to do.