Photographer Darija Jelincic is the Edge of Humanity Magazine contributor of this documentary photography. These images are from her project ‘Red Sonya‘. To see Darija’s body of work click on any image.
Gender identity as essential human right is ignored in almost all countries in the world. Daily, transgender persons face great violence, torture, rape and hate crimes by their families, neighbors and total strangers. Since they are not legally protected, most of the assaults are never reported. By neglecting and ignorance governments support violence and reinforce social trans-phobia. In most countries they are forced to live, as a gender, which they think, is fundamentally wrong for them.
Same experiences for Sonya. Born in the suburbs of San Francisco as a man, felt like a woman, being abused for such statements from early childhood, in the beginning by her family, mother and siblings, on a very aggressive level, later that circle only expanded. At one point of her life she could no longer endure so she started drinking and withdrawing into solitude, living in the mountains with dogs and wolfs. After a while she fell into problems and had to move to San Francisco. There she got all the care and rights under the condition to solve alcohol problems, what she did. I met Sonya in San Francisco where she is accepted, but still working on her identity.
San Francisco, California, USA, 2014.
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By Darija Jelincic