Tyler Ford is a writer, activist, actor, and public speaker who advocates for

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

non-binary Non-binary or genderqueer Gender identity, gender identities are those that are outside the male/female gender binary. Non-binary identities often fall under the transgender umbrella since non-binary people typically identify with a gende ...

people. Ford appeared as the first transgender contestant on ''

The Glee Project ''The Glee Project'' is an American reality television series from Oxygen. It served as an audition for the Fox musical comedy series ''Glee'', and the prize for the winner was a minimum seven-episode arc in the following season of the show. Th ...

'' in 2012. Ford lives and works in New York City.

Life

Designated female at birth and raised by a single mother in

Boca Raton, Florida Boca Raton ( ; ) is a city in Palm Beach County, Florida, United States. The population was 97,422 in the 2020 United States census, 2020 census and it ranked as the 23rd-largest city in Florida in 2022. Many people with a Boca Raton Address, ...

, Ford transitioned to male in college, but later came to identify as

agender Non-binary or genderqueer gender identities are those that are outside the male/female gender binary. Non-binary identities often fall under the transgender umbrella since non-binary people typically identify with a gender that is differ ...

. Ford is of mixed black and white Jewish ethnicity. Their writing and speaking frequently addresses their challenges living as a transgender

person of color The term "person of color" (: people of color or persons of color; abbreviated POC) is used to describe any person who is not considered "white". In its current meaning, the term originated in, and is associated with, the United States. From th ...

. Ford gained national attention when

Miley Cyrus Miley Ray Cyrus ( , born Destiny Hope Cyrus, November 23, 1992) is an American singer, songwriter, actress and director. Regarded as a contemporary pop icon, Cyrus has been recognized for her evolving artistry and image reinventions. She is ...

brought them as her date to The Foundation for AIDS Research (AMFAR) gala in 2015. Cyrus sought to raise awareness of people with non-binary gender identities as part of her

LGBTQ LGBTQ people are individuals who are lesbian, Gay men, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer, or questioning (sexuality and gender), questioning. Many variants of the initialism are used; LGBTQIA+ people incorporates intersex, Asexuality, asexual, ...

advocacy work with the

Happy Hippie Foundation The Happy Hippie Foundation is an American non-profit organization founded by American singer and entertainer Miley Cyrus on September 17, 2014, and officially launched to the public on May 5, 2015. The foundation focuses on youth homelessness (p ...

; Ford and their friend

Ariana Grande Ariana Grande-Butera ( ; born June 26, 1993) is an American singer, songwriter, and actress. Regarded as a pop icon and an influential figure in popular music, Grande is known for her four-octave vocal range, which extends into the whistle re ...

joined Cyrus in that effort.

Work and activism

Writing

Ford wrote an article for ''

The Guardian ''The Guardian'' is a British daily newspaper. It was founded in Manchester in 1821 as ''The Manchester Guardian'' and changed its name in 1959, followed by a move to London. Along with its sister paper, ''The Guardian Weekly'', ''The Guardi ...

'' in 2015 and has written multiple articles for ''

them. ''Them'' is an American online LGBTQ magazine launched in October 2017 by Phillip Picardi and owned by Condé Nast. Its coverage includes LGBTQ culture, fashion, and politics. History In 2017 Picardi, then the director of ''Teen Vogue'', ...

'' in 2017 and again in 2018. They have written for MTV, ''

Rookie A rookie is a person new to an occupation, profession, or hobby. In sports, a ''rookie'' is a professional athlete in their first season (or year). In contrast with a veteran who has experience, a rookie is typically considered needing more tra ...

'', and other web sites.

Public speaking

Ford has presented at

South by Southwest South by Southwest (SXSW) is an annual conglomeration of parallel film, interactive media, and music festivals and Convention (meeting), conferences organized jointly that take place in mid-March in Austin, Texas. It began in 1987 and has conti ...

(SXSW). They gave the opening remarks for New York Youth Pride parade in 2018, in which they talked about their coming out and transition.

Television

In June 2017, Ford began voicing a non-binary character Milo on the

Amazon Video Amazon Prime Video, known simply as Prime Video, is an American subscription video on-demand over-the-top streaming television service owned by Amazon. The service primarily distributes films and television series produced or co-produced by ...

animated series ''

Danger & Eggs ''Danger & Eggs'' is an American animated series created by Mike Owens and Shadi Petosky that premiered on Amazon Video on June 30, 2017. The show focuses on the adventures of a cyan-haired teenaged girl and her giant anthropomorphic egg friend. ...

''.

Awards and recognition

Ford was named as one of

MTV MTV (an initialism of Music Television) is an American cable television television channel, channel and the flagship property of the MTV Entertainment Group sub-division of the Paramount Media Networks division of Paramount Global. Launched on ...

's best

social media Social media are interactive technologies that facilitate the Content creation, creation, information exchange, sharing and news aggregator, aggregation of Content (media), content (such as ideas, interests, and other forms of expression) amongs ...

stars in 2015, and as one of the

Dazed ''Dazed'' (''Dazed & Confused'' until February 2014) is a quarterly British lifestyle magazine founded in 1991. It covers music, fashion, film, art, and literature. ''Dazed'' is published by Dazed Media, an independent media group known for produ ...

100 visionary talents in 2016.

References

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Ford, Tyler 1990s births American non-binary writers American LGBTQ rights activists Living people Transgender rights activists LGBTQ people from Florida African-American LGBTQ people People from Boca Raton, Florida Activists from Florida Vanderbilt University alumni Writers from Florida Non-binary activists Agender people Year of birth missing (living people)