Lou Sullivan

“[They] said I couldn’t live as a gay man, but it looks like I’m going to die like one.” Good Midwestern girls did not grow up to be gay men and die from AIDS. Unless they were transgender pioneer Lou Sullivan (1951-1991).

In this heart-wrenchingly inspirational biography, Brice D. Smith reclaims one of the most tragically overlooked people in LGBT history. Sullivan marched for Civil Rights, embraced the 1960s counterculture, came of age in the gay liberation movement, transformed medical treatment of trans people, institutionalized trans history, forged an international female-to-male (FTM) transgender community and died from AIDS at the epicenter of the crisis. He overcame tremendous obstacles to be who he was and dedicated his life to helping others do the same. An activist to the end, Sullivan inspired a generation to rethink gender identity, sexual orientation and what it means to be human.

What others are saying:

…Smith’s meticulous reconstruction of Sullivan’s all-too-short passage through this world allows those of us living now to​ draw strength from the example of a long-gone man whose life is still worthy of emulation.”
—Susan Stryker, author of Transgender History and co-director of ​Screaming
Queens: The Riot at Compton’s Cafeteria

“The immeasurable research and care given by Smith to Sullivan’s story of self-realization is a gift….” .
—Rhys Ernst, artist & filmmaker; producer of We’ve Been Around and Transparent

“…Solidly informative and inspirational: Anyone interested in…the potential for one modest yet dedicated human being to change the world should meet Lou Sullivan through Smith’s insightful work.”
—Jamison Green, author of Becoming a Visible Man

“Smith’s adept story-telling brings trans pioneer Lou Sullivan to life in this vivid biography…. Such loving treatment is long overdue for one of the most influential figures in transgender history.”
—K.J. Rawson, director of the Digital Transgender Archive

“…[T]his path-breaking and much-awaited biography… will find an eager audience among all those interested in gender, history and how we change the world. I can’t wait to share it with students and friends alike.”
—Finn Enke, professor of History and Gender and Women’s Studies,
University of Wisconsin, Madison

“…[A]n invaluable and timely service to scholars of queer history, trans people and all lovers of biographical storytelling….”
—Terry Beswick, director of the GLBT Historical Society