Hello TALONS community, below is my Eminent Leaning Centre. Please use the full screen option and zoom in for an optimal viewing experience.
I am very thankful to have had the opportunity to interview Owen Keehnen. If you want to learn more about him and the legacy project, click here, or watch the video below.
If you have any questions, comments, or concerns, feel free to comment down below.
this was super detailed and the newspaper article was really well done! what exactly drew you to choose Alan?
Thanks for the comment Carolyn,
I was mostly drawn to Alan Hart because we have shared some of the same experiences of being transgender, and I can relate to a lot of his struggles because of it.
I love how realistic and aesthetic your newspaper is! It was very thorough and I can say I learned about your notable. It looks like you put a lot of time and thought into it. If you met your notable in real life what do you think you would say to him?
I would probably start off with thanking him for everything he has done for the trans community, and I would make sure to let him know that his legacy is being preserved.
I thought the design idea you chose to do was really cool. I would have never thought of making a newspaper. I really liked your timeline and how you expanded upon it in the text below. It made it easy to skim through and allowed me to choose what event I wanted to explore further.
How do you think being the first man to undergo a hysterectomy changed the public’s view of Alan?
This is an excellent question. From the few news paper clippings I have, it is clear that the general public didn’t see Hart as a man. While they do use his preferred name (most likely because it was also his legal name), they all use she/her pronouns for him. To my understanding, the general public only recognized him for his medical achievements, and not for his identity.
Hi,
Are there any other trans people you look up to personally?
Mrs. Chambers
Hi Mrs. Chambers, thank you for your comment. The trans people I personally look up to most would be Jamie Dodger, Alex Renee, and Elliot Page.
I also really admire Jamie Dodger! He has such a calm and kind way of explaining transgender issues. I have learned so much from him.
Mrs. Chambers
The newspaper aesthetic is very thematically cool. It was very thorough, and the flow of your writing feels very natural. Do you think being transgender affected his career at all. Do you think he could have reached higher levels of fame if the world was more accepting of who he was?
His Identity highly affected his career. Though he did have a lot more opportunities in his field by presenting as male, he was forced to resign from many positions in order to not be outed by his old classmates and colleagues. If he was more accepted by his peers, he wouldn’t have to compromise his opportunities in order to protect his identity. He would also be able to be more open about his life and his struggles to the public, which would most likely grant him a higher following.
Hannah, this is a wonderful learning centre! Your newspaper was beautifully written and designed! I was struck when reading about Hart’s life, how his family was generally quite accepting of his gender identity. That’s unusual for his era, but heartwarming too. How do you think Hart and his family would feel about the progress society has made in LGBTQ2+ acceptance since his lifetime? Do you think he would be excited by the progress or disheartened by the continued pushback?
Hi Ms. Wasstrom, thank you for your comment. I think that in Alan’s time, since the concept of transitioning was so new, there was a lot less negative stigma surrounding the concept. People didn’t really know what it was, so I imagine there would be less of a hate, and more of a curiosity concerning the topic, especially in the medical community. I think Alan Hart would be happy to see that there are more people now that are able to express themselves as who they are, and get the required medical and emotional support to guide them through their transition, but I think he would also be saddened to see the negative stigma surrounding the community, and some of the hate and violence that it receives.
Hi! I really enjoyed reading your newspaper article on Alan Hart! Your words and views are very impactful and inspiring. Good Job 🙂
Thanks for the comment Ar-Ra! I appreciate your feedback.
I really loved the use of newspaper style learning centre. It is unique, creative, and interesting. You did a great job integrating your interview into the newspaper. I also really liked your use of quotes. It made it far more engaging to read. One question I have is, if Mr. Hart was still alive today would the public view of the trans community be different?
Thanks! Great work!
Hi Lucas, I would guess that if Alan Hart was still alive today, he would help deliver strong support for the trans community. I think he would be able to relieve a lot of the stigma and misinformation regarding the topic with his unique perspective and wisdom and I hope he would help a lot of people get a better understanding of the subject.
Thanks for sharing the eminence of this very important and personally relevant person with us. He was ahead of his times in so many ways. I wonder why so few of us have heard of him before. He was a leader and a change maker.