This Underground Trans Icon Needs Your Help

If you're feeling giving this Pride season, we've got a worthy cause for you: New York City artist Bailey Stiles is raising money for her gender confirmation surgery, and you can help this underground icon meet her 20k goal.

Stiles has been a fixture on the New York queer art scene for years as a model, muse, hair stylist, and member of drag collective Chez Deep (alongside another trans icon, actress Hari Nef). Stiles is a regular at parties like Ladyfag's Holy Mountain and was one of the It Girls who made Frankie Sharp's dearly departed Westgay such a spectacle.

This week, Stiles launched her crowdfunding campaign via Go Fund Me, and she enlisted the help of queer notables Juliana Huxtable, La'fem Ladosha, Sussi, Love Bailey and Nef for a video message about the campaign.

The campaign page reads:

"Gender Confirmation Surgery should be a given right for gender non-conforming individuals like Bailey Stiles and we are here to ask you to demonstrate that you believe in this, too. While we realize this is a huge amount of money to fundraise, we are also all conscious of how much a community can do for someone they love. We are hoping this campaign can take off around the world and share with trans individuals everywhere a story in success, founded in a community of interdependence and love. Bailey's GRS would not only be an incredible celebration of her presence and spirit to all of us, but would also demonstrate a legible success story for trans communities around the world."

Gender confirmation surgery helps trans people fully realize their identities, and crowdfunding websites are full of campaigns made by trans people who can use your help. Pride is so filled with corporations pandering for gay dollars, why not put our money towards helping those in our community who most need it?

Donate to Bailey Stiles' GRS crowdfunding campaign here.