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Start Over You searched for: Creator Denny, Dallas, 1949- Remove constraint Creator: Denny, Dallas, 1949-

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Collection

National Transgender Library and Archive Collection, 1977-2001 (majority within 1990-1999)

28.5 Linear Feet (20 boxes)

The paper and printed portion of the collection is organized into 9 series. The first 5 are organizations with which Dallas Denny was involved or interacted. These series are: I. American Educational Gender Information Service, II. Human Outreach and Achievement Institute, III. Outreach Institute for Gender Studies, IV. Atlanta Pride Committee, and V. International Foundation for Gender Education. The remaining paper series are: VI. Conferences, VII. Miscellaneous Publications, VIII. Shuttle Harry Benjamin, and IX. Photographs (unidentified). Boxes 5 through 14 contain ephemera, memorabilia, photographs, videotapes, computer media, and audio tapes. An item listing is provided in most instances. Boxes 15 through 19 contain correspondence that was processed at a different time than the rest of the collection. For this reason, and because the materials are somewhat different than the rest of the collection, it has been kept separate. The correspondence is organized into 5 series: I. Correspondence, Individuals A-I (Closed), II. Correspondence, Individuals J-Z (Closed), III. Correspondence, 1989-July 1995, IV. Correspondence, August 1995-December 1998, and V. Miscellaneous. The AEGIS files are divided into nine parts based on delineations present in the original file structure. These represent the activities and governance of the organization. Correspondence files are most often organized chronologically within a folder, except for the General Mailings. A larger collection of correspondence can be found further on in the collection. The Survey folders contain survey responses in regard to the experiences of transgendered individuals with therapy and their familiarity with the Standards of Care. Some of the responses included identifying information; these have been removed and replaced with photocopies that have such information blacked out. The Human Outreach and Achievement Institute is the predecessor to the Outreach Institute for Gender Studies and therefore the original host of Fantasia Fair. However, for the sake of continuity, the Fantasia Fair materials for 1992 and 1993 are housed with the rest of the Fair materials in the Outreach Institute series. Most materials within the Miscellaneous Publications series are housed in individual folders; however, a couple folders have multiple publications because they dealt with the same topic area. Boxes 7 through 11 contain a variety of objects, memorabilia, and paraphernalia. In most cases the items are listed individually within the main box divisions. Further description is provided for some items in interior boxes as needed. Box 10A contains photographs that have been divided into sections based on the envelopes and order in which they were found. Only a few of the sections had identifying information and this is reflected in the finding aid. Beginning with Box 15, this portion of the collection consists mainly of correspondence. It includes 4 linear feet of correspondence and 0.5 feet of miscellaneous materials. Correspondence, written by and to Denny, is separated and arranged by name or date, depending on the quantity of communication between Denny and a particular individual. Denny maintained regular correspondence with several people over extended periods of time. Because of the sensitive nature of the subject matter, several people signed only their first names. Thus, several folders in the "Correspondence by Name" section are filed under the first name. The greatest portion of the correspondence is from transgender and transsexual individuals seeking information and advice. Many of these individuals are isolated from others with a common experience and, therefore, turned to AEGIS and Denny as their strongest (if not only) source of support. The correspondence, which ranges from discussion of hormones to coming out to family members, reveals not only the services that AEGIS offered, but also the emotional and physical needs of the transgender community. Individuals' letters are extensive and offer a glimpse into the day-to-day struggles of those who identify as transgender. Women and men write about cross-dressing, surgery options, experiences in other countries, living without surgery and many other issues. Because of the sensitive and personal nature of these letters access to them is restricted until the year 2050. Correspondence also include letters written between Denny and AEGIS board members and other leaders in the transgender community. Denny's involvement with other organizations and in organizing events reveals how important AEGIS was within the MTF community. Also of interest are correspondence between Denny and various other organizations. The gender community is a diverse group that does not always see eye-to-eye and tension arises occasionally between cross-dressers and transsexuals, male-to-females and female-to-males, etc. Letters from and to a heterosexual cross-dressers group and a female-to-male organization reveal Denny's on-going attempts to raise awareness of and reach an understanding with these groups.