Gibby Thomas interview, 2021-07-02
Scope and Contents
D.C. Oral History Collaborative (DCOHC) is a citywide initiative to train community members in oral history skills, fund new and ongoing oral history projects, connect volunteers with oral history projects, and publicize existing oral history collections. DCOHC is a project of DC Public Library, HumanitiesDC, and the Historical Society of Washington, D.C. This collection contains oral history interviews, transcripts, and indexes produced by DCOHC grantees.
Dates
- Creation: 2021-07-02
Creator
- Thomas, Gabrielle, 1957- (Person)
Language of Materials
English
Biographical / Historical
Born in the Black community of Muirkirk in Beltsville, Maryland, in 1957, Gibby Thomas mostly grew up in North Brentwood, Maryland, but started spending time in D.C. at a young age. She worked at the Department of Agriculture and built community by going to the clubs downtown. She has been connected to several community organizations helping the transgender and larger LGBT communities in D.C. including THE, Us Helping Us, Damien Ministries, and others. She now lives on Eastern Avenue, on the D.C. side.
Extent
From the Collection: 1.13 Terabytes
Abstract
Ms. Thomas discusses growing up in North Brentwood, just outside D.C., her early sense of herself as different and coming into her gender and sexuality, other people treating her as a girl from a young age, the importance of support from her family, how D.C. was the center of things and where she found community with transgender women, sex work, the AIDS epidemic and working as a home health aide, her involvement with gay, transgender and HIV/AIDS organizations including Transgender Health Empowerment, and the changes in the city.
General
Please note: This interview includes graphic descriptions of violence.
Repository Details
Part of the The People's Archive, Martin Luther King, Jr. Memorial Library Repository