By Alexandra Brodsky • @azbrodsky • 11 years ago

Trans* Zombies for President 2012


Ed. note: This post is part of the second round of the Feministing “So You Think You Can Blog” contributor contest (background here). Stay tuned all week as our six finalists take turns turns covering the blog and giving us a sense of their personal contributor style. The winner of the contest and newest member of the Feministing team will be announced next week!

Speaking of the debate, it’s time to get out the vote… for the 2012 Right Out Music and Video Awards! Today is your last day to cast a ballot for your favorite queer musician.

Personally, I’m rooting for veteran Bay Area folk singer StormMiguel Florez, who has spoken candidly about the unique challenges transitioning posed to his singing. Last week Florez released his new video for “I’ve Been to Manhattan,” a campy mini-zombie thriller cum tale of self-discovery. Florez’s use of the zombie reminds me of Donna Haraway’s exploration of gender and sexuality through the cyborg, turning to the not-quite-human to describe very human feelings. Yet, as the zombified Florez makes his way from the lonely, anti-zombie streets of New York (played by San Francisco) to a big zombie rager in a superfun dive bar, the video offers a more communal and ultimately triumphant expression of queer identity that will resonate with trans* and cis listeners alike: Florez, rising from some tough times, croons that he’s “flying high… doing fine in Manhattan,” and (spoiler!!!) at the end Team Zombie joins together for a midnight snack.

Who are you voting for? Lyrics after the jump (transcribed myself, comment if I heard wrong!)

Feeling fine in Manhattan
Ready to make my mark
I’m where it’s all happening
This is where I start

To dream big and know it
To stand tall and show it
My night may have started
Down in the low
But I’ve been to Manhattan, so…

Chorus:

I’m flying high
Feeling fine
I won’t lie, I know what’s mine
You left me high and dry
Sent me packing
But I’m doing fine here in Manhattan

The lights shine up the city
And the bartender is pretty
Now I’m sure he’s seen the likes of me before
But he smiles and he listens and he pours

I drink deep to forget ya
And I curse the day that I met ya
You may have left me
Out in the cold
But I been to Manhattan, so…

Chorus x3

Disclaimer: This post was written by a Feministing Community user and does not necessarily reflect the views of any Feministing columnist, editor, or executive director.

Washington, DC

Alexandra Brodsky was a senior editor at Feministing.com. During her four years at the site, she wrote about gender violence, reproductive justice, and education equity and ran the site's book review column. She is now a Skadden Fellow at the National Women's Law Center and also serves as the Board Chair of Know Your IX, a national student-led movement to end gender violence, which she co-founded and previously co-directed. Alexandra has written for publications including the New York Times, the Atlantic, the Guardian, and the Nation, and she is the co-editor of The Feminist Utopia Project: 57 Visions of a Wildly Better Future. She has spoken about violence against women and reproductive justice at campuses across the country and on MSNBC, ABC, NBC, CBS, CNN, FOX, ESPN, and NPR.

Alexandra Brodsky was a senior editor at Feministing.com.

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