Statement from Jesse Freidin:
"‘Are You OK?’ documents the faces and stories of trans and non-binary youth living in the United States who are ready to stand up to political annihilation. Flanked by their supportive families, a diverse group of outspoken and deeply loved youth present their strength and joy to the world in a revolt against the country’s attempt to erase them – an antidote to the misinformed, overused imagery of desolate trans youth we often see in journalism. For me, this is a trans survival project. 

As a queer man of trans experience, and someone raised in a family of two Holocaust survivors, this work has become a contemporary archive of the disappearance of my community and a cathartic way to say that I am (and we are) still here. It is a social and ethnographic study, leaning on repetition for scientific effect. Participating in the creation of this work is dangerous– we meet in hiding behind buildings with extreme discretion in states that want us dead – yet the process of acknowledging each other offers a kind of healing within the frame. I have anonymized the parents to infer that the only way to have a living trans child is to support them. 

Before each portrait I do a short meditation exercise with each participant where we close our eyes, breathe into our most empowered selves, and show up together for a moment of self-actualization.

“Freidin’s commitment to the trans and gender non-conforming community goes beyond making captivating portraits. Recognizing the historical marginalization and erasure of trans individuals from the cannons of both art and history, Freidin is not only building a remarkable photo archive but also creating an invaluable repository of personal stories. By doing so, he affirms trans youth experiences in the present but also strives to correct the mistakes of history, ensuring that future generations have access to a comprehensive and authentic archive of the trans experience.” – Danielle Amodeo, Arts Equity Group"

Jesse Freidin Bio:
Jesse Freidin is an award-winning queer identified photographer and author focusing his attention on elevating the experience of the trans/gender non-conforming community through portraiture and interviews. His photography is part of over 150 private collections and has been exhibited in galleries nationally. His award-winning series “Are You OK?” addresses the dangerous wave of anti-trans legislation sweeping the country in a passionate attempt to erase stigma and elevate the voices of those most affected. Jesse’s work has been featured in The New York Times, NPR, Vogue, The Huffington Post, Inside Edition and more. He is a 2023 Critical Mass Top 50 award recipient, as well as the author of three books: When Dogs Heal: Powerful Stories of People Living with HIV and the Dogs That Saved Them (Lerner Books, 2020), Finding Shelter: Portraits of Love, Healing and Survival (Lyons Press, 2017), and ‘Are You OK?’ Volume One (2023).