Qstack News 04/08/26
A bimonthly digest of queer happenings around Substack
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🚨News & Announcements
Save the Date! Mac Crane’s A Sharp Endless Need on Jerry Portwood’s QLP Book Club
Probably couldn’t live without our white noise recordings (or Q-Tips), but there’s nothing quite so jangling as the blood-curdling screams of a Hero Wars ad on YouTube right in the middle of your Om Mani and your Padme Hum.
Try the White Noise streaming page at wnoise.org - you can also download 60-minute versions and play them on a loop for bedtime.
Sanity saved. ☑️
Got a big announcement, an article or event, a special offer, a new book published?
Message MTF or Keith Aron
You can also Post about it in the Qstack Chat!
Qstack Digest 04/08/26
Hexing the Patriarchy: The Art of W.I.T.C.H., 1968+
From Amy Lee Lillard of Rebel Yell Creative, an episode of The Art of Resistance Podcast devoted to the radical women’s activist group W.I.T.C.H. (Women International Terrorist Conspiracy from Hell)—deliciously campy and serious as a heart attack. Also check out Amy’s How-To resistance library of downloads, reading, and resources.
What Hormones Really Did to My Body
Olivia Hill—the first openly trans elected official in Tennessee (she serves on Nashville's Metropolitan Council, goddess bless her)—started a Substack just this week and has published a few posts already. This one is a personal take on how HRT affected her personally, with some surprises in the mix. Olivia also has a pretty fascinating personal story: a US veteran who saw combat in Desert Storm and transitioned in her mid-50's, then became the first openly trans elected official in a verrry RED state. Super gutsy.
The Only One He Knows
Jenks Farmer of Plant People’s remarks upon his induction into the South Carolina Authors Academy plucked at our heartstrings. For queer people, impostor syndrome can easily take the shape of doubt about whether we're queer "enough." Jenks highlights the rewards of holding onto belief in your own identity and your own words despite the static of naysaying from the outside—one of which is that you never know whose heart you might change by hanging in there.
Op-Ed: Princeton Kicked a Trans Runner Off the Track. Now Athletes Are Organizing A Boycott
Lavender Sound (Max Freedman)’s op-ed for Erin In The Morning on a call to boycott the top two track invitationals at Princeton this spring by trans track athletes. Sadly, Princeton's decision to remove an athlete from competition solely on the basis of her trans identity is nothing new, but it's illustrative of the dangerous escalation of anti-trans policies that institutions are taking in capitulation to the Trump administration.
Ben Egerman on queer archives, a little gay and trans history, preserving generational memory
From Jerry Portwood’s Queer Love Project and Ben Egerman—a fun conversation about queer archives, zines, and researching local queer history (including horse theft as gender-affirming care).
Thanks for featuring my story — I’ve heard from folks who know EITM-reading parents of trans kids that learning about the boycott helped them have some hope. It feels nice to have made a genuine difference with my work.
Troy, Nice to be in touch with Qstack this way. Fondly, Michael