Jamison "James" Green (born November 8, 1948) is a prominent

transgender rights The legal status of transgender people varies greatly around the world. Some countries have enacted laws protecting the rights of transgender individuals, but others have criminalized their gender identity or expression. In many cases, transg ...

activist, author, and educator focused on policy work. Green began living openly as a

trans man A trans man or transgender man is a man who was assigned female at birth. Trans men have a male gender identity, and many trans men undergo medical and social transition to alter their appearance in a way that aligns with their gender identi ...

in the late 1980s and is considered one of the few publicly open transgender men of that time. He started to advocate for the legal protection of transgender workers in 1989 and since then has served on multiple boards, including the Transgender Law and Policy Institute. In 2004, Green authored the book ''Becoming a Visible Man,'' which won the

Sylvia Rivera Sylvia Rivera (July 2, 1951 – February 19, 2002) was an American gay liberation and transgender activism, transgender rights activist September 21, 1995. Accessed July 24, 2015. who was also a noted community worker in LGBT history in New Yo ...

award.

Activism

Green is known as an activist for the legal protection, medical access, safety, civil rights, and dignity of

transgender A transgender (often shortened to trans) person has a gender identity different from that typically associated with the sex they were sex assignment, assigned at birth. The opposite of ''transgender'' is ''cisgender'', which describes perso ...

and

transsexual A transsexual person is someone who experiences a gender identity that is inconsistent with their assigned sex, and desires to permanently transition to the sex or gender with which they identify, usually seeking medical assistance (incl ...

people. "Green has been at the forefront of writing transgender health policy," writes

NewNowNext Logo TV (often shortened to Logo, and stylized as Logo.) is an American basic cable channel owned by Paramount Media Networks, a division of Paramount Global. Launched in 2005, Logo was originally dedicated to lifestyle and entertainment progra ...

, "His writing has been used to lay the groundwork for transgender anti-discrimination practices and insurance coverage across the nation." He began presenting on the fair treatment of transgender workers in 1989. Green continued his advocacy work and in the 1990s became "known both in the U.S. and abroad for his transgender activism." Green took over writing the ''FTM Newsletter'' after Lou Sullivan's death in 1991. The newsletter addressed the "complex legal, medical, and general social needs" of trans men. He was the leader of

FTM International FTM International is the oldest organization for trans men in the United States. Founded by Lou Sullivan in 1986, it is dedicated to the provision of resources for FTM individuals along with creating a visible community. History The organization ...

from March 1991 to August 1999. Green grew a San Francisco support group for transgender men into a global organization and in 1994 wrote a report on the discrimination against transgender people for the San Francisco Human Rights Commission. He has published several essays and articles, wrote a column for PlanetOut.com and has appeared in eight

documentary film A documentary film (often described simply as a documentary) is a nonfiction Film, motion picture intended to "document reality, primarily for instruction, education or maintaining a Recorded history, historical record". The American author and ...

s. Green has served on the boards of the Transgender Law and Policy Institute and the Equality Project, was an advisory board member of the

National Center for Transgender Equality The National Center for Transgender Equality (NCTE) is a nonprofit social equality organization founded in 2003 by transgender activist Mara Keisling in Washington, D.C. The organization works primarily in the areas of policy advocacy and media ...

, and chaired the board of Gender Education and Advocacy. He served as president of the

World Professional Association for Transgender Health The World Professional Association for Transgender Health (WPATH), formerly the Harry Benjamin International Gender Dysphoria Association (HBIGDA), is a professional organization devoted to the understanding and treatment of gender identity and ...

from 2014 to 2016. Green helped establish the

Human Rights Campaign The Human Rights Campaign (HRC) is an American LGBTQ advocacy group. It is the largest LGBTQ political lobbying organization within the United States. Based in Washington, D.C., the organization focuses on protecting and expanding rights for L ...

Corporate Equality Index The Corporate Equality Index is a report published by the Human Rights Campaign Foundation as a tool to rate American businesses on their treatment of gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgender employees, consumers and investors. Its primary source of ...

in 2002 and was a member of the organization's Business Council until late 2007, when he resigned over the organization's stance on transgender inclusion in the

Employment Non-Discrimination Act The Employment Non-Discrimination Act (ENDA) is legislation proposed in the United States Congress that would prohibit discrimination in hiring and employment on the basis of sexual orientation or, depending on the version of the bill, gender i ...

. In 2007, Green founded a consulting group which works with businesses, educators, and the government on transgender training and policy work called Transgender Strategies Consulting. Building on his experience as an activist, Green earned his Ph.D. in Equalities Law from

Manchester Metropolitan University Manchester Metropolitan University is located in the centre of Manchester, England. The university has 40,000 students and over 4,000 members of staff. It is home to four faculties (Arts and Humanities, Business and Law, Health and Education ...

in England in 2011.

''Becoming a Visible Man''

Green authored ''Becoming a Visible Man'' in 2004. The book combines two strands: autobiographical writing about Green's transition from living as a

lesbian A lesbian is a homosexual woman or girl. The word is also used for women in relation to their sexual identity or sexual behavior, regardless of sexual orientation, or as an adjective to characterize or associate nouns with female homosexu ...

to living as a

bisexual Bisexuality is romantic attraction, sexual attraction, or sexual behavior toward both males and females. It may also be defined as the attraction to more than one gender, to people of both the same and different gender, or the attraction t ...

, as well as broader commentary about the status of transsexual men in society. Writing in ''

The New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''NYT'') is an American daily newspaper based in New York City. ''The New York Times'' covers domestic, national, and international news, and publishes opinion pieces, investigative reports, and reviews. As one of ...

'',

Jennifer Finney Boylan Jennifer Finney Boylan (born June 22, 1958) is an American author, transgender activist, professor at Barnard College, and a former contributing opinion writer for the ''New York Times''. In December 2023, she became the president of PEN America ...

described it as "the first great memoir by a trans man". The book received the 2004

Award for best book in Transgender Studies from the

Center for Lesbian and Gay Studies CLAGS: The Center for LGBTQ Studies (formerly known as ''Center for Lesbian and Gay Studies'' or ''CLAGS'') was founded in 1991 by professor Martin Duberman as the first university-based research center in the United States dedicated to the study ...

and was also a finalist for a 2004

Lambda Literary Award Lambda Literary Awards, also known as the "Lammys", are awarded yearly by Lambda Literary Foundation, Lambda Literary to recognize the crucial role LGBTQ+ writers play in shaping the world. The Lammys celebrate the very best in LGBTQ+ literatur ...

. In 2020, Green published a new edition of the book under

Vanderbilt University Vanderbilt University (informally Vandy or VU) is a private university, private research university in Nashville, Tennessee, United States. Founded in 1873, it was named in honor of shipping and railroad magnate Cornelius Vanderbilt, who provide ...

Press. In 2019,

described the book as, "still canonical in transgender literature. Part autobiography, part gender theory, the book not only embraces transgender people in their first steps of living openly if they so desire; it challenges cisgender readers to interrogate their own identities."

Awards

In 2009, Green was the first transgender person to receive the Distinguished Service Award from the Association of Gay and Lesbian Psychiatrists.

Personal life

Green began his medical transition in the late 1980s with the intention of living openly about his transgender status. He is considered one of few publicly open transgender men of that time. Today, Green lives in the Pacific Northwest with his wife, Heidi. He is

Bibliography

*(2004) ''Becoming a Visible Man'' (

Press) ()

Activism

''Becoming a Visible Man''

Awards

Personal life

Bibliography

References

External links