I Was Taught To Be Ashamed of My Sexuality, 2009

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Iranian trans woman Holia, struggled with her identity from a young age. After years of turmoil and hiding the truth, she finally found community and support within a queer group of friends with varying expressions of gender. There she found a new self-confidence, but the ultimate result of her journey was that had to leave her homeland, a country that continues to view homosexuality and transsexuality as a sickness.

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As a straight, cisgender person, it was not easy for me to join a group that did not trust non-trans and non-homosexuals. But gradually, friendship and trust developed, which led to the documentary photographs of this series, capturing the daily life, parties and private moments of a group of Iranian transgender people, who have been told by religion and society (and even their own families) to be ashamed of their sexuality and their sexual identity.

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