The American LGBTQ+ Museum

EVENT DETAILS

Join us for Lavender Literary Society Book Club featuring acclaimed author and documentary filmmaker, Tourmaline, in conversation with TransLash’s founder, Imara Jones, as they discuss Marsha.

Written with sparkling prose, Tourmaline’s richly researched biography Marsha finally brings this iconic figure to life, in full color. We vividly meet Marsha as both an activist and artist: She performed with RuPaul and with the internationally renowned drag troupe The Hot Peaches. She was a muse to countless artists from Andy Warhol to the band Earth, Wind & Fire. And she continues to inspire people today.

ABOUT LAVENDER LITERARY SOCIETY

The American LGBTQ+ Museum Book Club is a space for community and connection, bridging generations through the magic of storytelling. The selections will be a mix of popular queer history and memoir with inspiring authors and iconic guest facilitators. The pages we turn will become stepping stones for intergenerational dialogue, fostering understanding, empathy, and unity. Together, we’ll traverse the landscapes of queer culture, savoring the nuances and complexities that make our stories uniquely ours.

This isn’t just a book club; it’s a movement. Reading together becomes a powerful act of empowerment, a catalyst for change, and a testament to the resilience of the LGBTQ+ spirit. Participants will be a part of something extraordinary. In this book club, we won’t just read, we’ll weave the threads of our stories into a tapestry of strength, resilience, and pride.

AUTHOR

A Guggenheim Fellow and TIME100 Honoree, Tourmaline is an artist, filmmaker, and writer. Tourmaline’s history-making book MARSHA (May 2025) is the first definitive biography of the revolutionary Black trans activist Marsha P. Johnson. It has received a Starred Review by Publishers Weekly, was selected by The New York Times for the Nonfiction Spring Book Preview, and is already a national bestseller. Tourmaline’s art is in the permanent collections of The Met, MoMA, Tate, and the Whitney. Her influence in contemporary art has also been showcased in the Venice Biennale and the Whitney Biennial. Tourmaline’s award-winning films — including the critically acclaimed Happy Birthday, Marsha! — have been widely recognized for their unique blend of historical narrative and speculative futurism.

Tourmaline’s portfolio extends to fashion: her trans-inclusive swimwear line with Chromat debuted at New York Fashion Week. A former leader of the Trans Health Campaign at the Sylvia Rivera Law Project, Tourmaline has built a career rooted in community organizing and trans liberation, and is a transformative voice in movements for racial, economic, and gender justice. Tourmaline is a graduate of Columbia University and lives in Miami with her partner Cameron and their cat Jean.

HOST

Imara Jones, whose work has won Emmy and Peabody Awards, is the creator of TransLash Media, a cross-platform, non-profit journalism and narrative organization, which produces content to shift the current culture of hostility towards transgender people in the US. She was named by Time Magazine as one of the 100 Most Influential People on the planet in 2023. As part of her work at TransLash, Imara hosts the TransLash Podcast with Imara Jones, which received the 2023 Outstanding Podcast Award from GLAAD ; as well as the investigative, limited series, The Anti-Trans Hate Machine: A Plot Against Equality which received the Excellence in Podcasting Award from the National LGBTQ+ Journalists Association.

Imara is also the first trans person to ever receive an award from the National Black Journalists Association, having garnered the Journalist of Distinction Award in 2022. Also in 2022, Politico named her as one of the 40 power players at the intersection of race, politics, and policy in the United States. In 2020 Imara was featured on the cover of Time Magazine as part of its New American Revolution special edition. In 2019 she chaired the first-ever UN High Level Meeting on Gender Diversity with over 600 participants. Imara has been featured regularly in The Guardian, The Nation, MSNBC, CNBC, NPR, Fast Company and GQ. Imara is a 2021 Nathan Cummings Foundation Fellow and a 2019 Soros Equality Fellow.

GRAPHIC

Our beautiful graphic is designed by the incredible Loveis Wise (they/he), a multidisciplinary artist, designer, creative director, and Capricorn, drawing reimagined futures and playfulness in Los Angeles.

ACCESSIBILITY

This program will be presented via Zoom with live closed captioning available in English. We strive to host inclusive, accessible events that enable all individuals, including individuals with disabilities, to engage fully. Please reach out with any questions, requests or needs to info@americanlgbtqmuseum.org.