People are scared to label themselves in a way that Leslie Feinberg was never afraid to do.

Going by the gender-inclusive pronouns “ze” and “hir”, Feinberg embraced exactly who ze was and identified as an anti-racist white, working-class, secular Jewish, lesbian, female, revolutionary communist.

Feinberg’s historical and theoretical writings have impacted popular culture, academic research, and public policies. Ze also wrote novels based on hir own life experience. Shauna Miller of The Atlantic said hir writings “changed queer history. It changed trans history. It changed dyke history. And how it did that was by honestly telling a brutally real, beautifully vulnerable and messy personal story of a butch lesbian.” Hir novel Stone Butch Blues was the first mainstream book to highlight what it means to be transgender in the United States.

Feinberg didn’t only study and write, ze also was an activist who was considered a trans leader when the movement was still young.

When a Black trans woman named  Cece McDonald was jailed for stabbing someone in self defense, Feinberg fought. Ze said, “The right of self-defense against all forms of oppressions — the spirit of Stonewall — is at the heart of the demand to free McDonald.”

Feinstein stood with other marginalized peoples and brought the gay community to anti-racism walks. Ze believed that sticking together and standing up for one another was the answer to equality. Feinberg reminds us that our differences are to be embraced and celebrated.