Abigail
Adria
Alejandra
Alexa
Alix
Andrea L
Andrea C
Britany
Daisy
Daniela C
Daniela
Erika
Franchesca
Gina
Julia
July
Kaori
Katia
Lorena
Mia
Michel
Rebeca
Veronnika
Vicky
Vivi
The Project
A Collective, A Camera, Their Clothes. Their Pose.
Shot throughout Mexico City over 4 years, this collaborative project features a community of trans women spanning the generations, from 18 to 60+.
Among this group of friends and colleagues, you’ll find activists and curanderas. Musicians and beauticians. Lawyers and nurses. Gamers and dancers. Teachers and caregivers. Painters and bureaucrats. Athletes and chefs. Many are chilangos, born and raised. Others migrated to the endless sprawl of Mexico City in search of more: more possibility, more safety, more community. Some transitioned years ago. Some only recently. Many work in the sex industry. Many do not.
Each story is unique.
But collectively theirs is a shared and enduring struggle. A ceaseless fight. A righteous demand. Not for tolerance. But for the very basics of life and liberty… A place to work. A place to sleep. Decent healthcare. Safety from violence and harassment. Protection from police brutality. Emancipation from judicial abuse. And above all, DIGNITY and RESPECT.
With humility, this project seeks to honor that struggle through celebration and elevation. Sharing trust and time, each woman takes center stage as the star of her own story. Seen as she wants to be seen. No judgement. No constraint. No permission asked. None required. And if anyone has a problem with it:
NYC-based photographer Alan Mozes moves between documentary and portraiture with a fluid mix of empathy and edge.
For more than a decade his intimate portraits of American presidential politics and his celebratory exploration of House-Ballroom culture have tracked the iconic grit and glamour of both worlds.
As Mozes’ first photographic venture in Mexico, ¿Y qué? shares the same purposeful DNA: a long-form focus on social change, political turbulence, and the creative space… a space where passion, identity, culture, and performance converge.
Alongside exhibitions at the British National Portrait Gallery, The Photographer’s Gallery London, Arts Westchester, and the Leslie Lohman Museum, Mozes’ work has been profiled in Vanity Fair, Canon Europe, Business Insider, and Pro Photo Daily. A finalist for the prestigious Taylor Wessing Photographic Portrait Prize, his work is now also a part of the permanent collections of both the Google Arts and Culture archive and the U.S. Stonewall National Monument.
Rafael Fajer Camus is a Mexican writer and real estate advisor, currently based in Mexico City.
He studied at NYU and has lived between New York and Paris, cities that shaped his way of seeing, narrating, and inhabiting space. He lives in Mexico City, where he develops his professional and creative work. He served as the lead of this project, articulating the conceptual vision, the creative process, and a close, sustained relationship with the collective of participating trans women.
His work exists at the intersection of language, image, and territory, exploring how the body, identity, and desire are inscribed within social, political, and urban contexts. With a deep commitment to social justice and human rights, his practice seeks to open spaces of representation where voice, presence, and autonomy are not granted, but claimed.
Atlawa
At ATLAWA, the host of ¿Y Qué?, we believe in the importance of giving back to our community, for all the support it has given to us over the years.
We also seek to build bridges with those whose struggles and challenges may differ froam our own, but are no less worthy and deserving of visibility and attention. RAFAEL FAJER’S profoundly human photographic project invites reflection on the lives of trans women in Mexico City… and in particular a Trans Colectivo in Iztapalapa dedicated to fighting the good fight for respect, dignity and human rights.
Centered around a collection of large-format images by ALAN MOZES, the ¿Y Qué? initiative shines a proud and powerful light on members of this community. And we at ATLAWA are honored to support this moving project and amplify its message.
Marsha
Developed by Vocal Type, this font was named in honor of Marsha P. Johnson, an African-American trans woman and pioneering LGBTQ+ activist throughout the 1960’s and 70’s.
Marsha reportedly said that the “P” stood for her signature motto: “Pay It No Mind”… serving notice to one and all that on this barren land where her fucks had once grown, Marsha sadly had none left to give.
The design pays homage to the lettering that once adorned the outdoor signage of NY’s StoneWall Inn, a historic landmark now hailed around the world as a global symbol of LGBTQ+ rights and pride.
The Collective
Freedom, Justice and Dignity for Us — they will never erase us.
The TRANS COLLECTIVE FOR THE FREEDOM TO BE AND TO DECIDE is an organization with more than a decade of experience, whose name reflects its unbreakable commitment to the fight for the human rights of all trans people in Mexico.
Composed entirely of transgender women, the COLLECTIVE’S work is rooted in a trans-for-trans perspective, grounded in lived experience and in the conviction that community power is indispensable.
Its mission is to accompany and support trans women in their struggle to survive and thrive in the face of systemic, daily, and extreme exclusion.
Founded and led by ANDREA LUNA, the COLLECTIVE emerged from a project initially funded by the Global Fund in Mexico and currently receives support and financing from the International Trans Fund.
ANDREA is a historic figure in community-based trans activism in Mexico City: a trans woman born and raised in Iztapalapa, and a survivor of multiple forms of violence, many of them deeply rooted in structural inequality.
Centered on organization and COLLECTIVE resistance, the COLLECTIVE’S work seeks to offer a highly vulnerable community better and more dignified opportunities in life.
The activist origins of ANDREA and her companions even predate the formal founding of the COLLECTIVE and go back more than fifteen years, when they began community work to bring Mexico City’s trans population access to prevention resources and HIV testing.
This work was carried out in spaces historically abandoned by the State, particularly in the Mexico City Metro, as well as in streets, detention centers, sex-work venues, and public transportation.
Over time, the original members of the emerging COLLECTIVE established working relationships with strategic allies, securing resources through collaborations and community-outreach activities.
MISSION
To help trans people become agents of social change, capable of generating their own development through the replication of successful community models, the strengthening of leadership, and continuous training, promoting access to justice, the right to health, and a dignified life.
VISION
To be a reference for other trans organizations, strengthening their work and supporting the development of new trans leaders whose actions contribute to the well-being, comprehensive health, and dignity of the trans community in Mexico.
LINES OF ACTION
Addressing persistent and structural issues affecting the trans population.
STRENGTHENING TRANS LEADERSHIP
Expand spaces and opportunities for trans women to develop strong leadership. Promote political, social, systemic, and professional advocacy. Encourage training processes and support that provide local communities with tools to replicate and expand these efforts within their own contexts.
ORGANIZATIONAL STRENGTHENING AND LEGALIZATION OF COLLECTIVE
In response to the shortage of formally established trans organizations, provide technical support and financial assistance to COLLECTIVE with organizational potential so they can formalize their legal status, manage resources, and sustain long-term projects.
SUPPORT FOR HISTORICALLY MARGINALIZED TRANS POPULATIONS
Direct work with trans women in sex work, older trans women, and trans women living in extreme poverty. Implementation of social programs, community support, and concrete action plans aimed at improving quality of life.
SUPPORT FOR TRANS WOMEN DEPRIVED OF LIBERTY
Support for incarcerated trans women, especially those living with HIV, engaged in sex work, and/or abandoned by their families. In response to institutional neglect, regular visits are made to correctional facilities to provide information, workshops, and support spaces that strengthen well-being and empowerment during incarceration.
NETWORKING
For more than ten years, the COLLECTIVE has promoted the NATIONAL TRANS COMMUNITY NETWORK, a collaborative space where community work experiences are shared and the leadership of trans women across different states in the country is strengthened.
The network brings together grassroots leaders from 22 states of the Republic and representatives from 11 boroughs of Mexico City.
Each year, the COLLECTIVE organizes the NATIONAL MEETING OF TRANS WOMEN, a political and community space that highlights the growth of member organizations and introduces new state and local representatives. More than 80 active trans women organized in their communities attend this meeting.
Donaciones
INSTITUCIÓN BANCARIA: BANAMEX
CLABE: 002180701547587025
TITULAR: COLECTIVO TRANS POR LA LIBERTAD DE SER Y DECIDIR
All net proceeds, after production costs have been covered, will be allocated in full to COLECTIVO TRANS POR LA LIBERTAD DE SER Y DECIDIR, a Mexico-based organization with over a decade of sustained work and recognized for its unwavering commitment to the defense and advancement of the human rights of trans people.
Formed and led entirely by transgender women, THE COLLECTIVE operates from a trans-for-trans framework, grounded in lived experience, community knowledge, and the fundamental belief that collective power is essential to achieving structural change.
The organization’s mission is to advance trans justice, health equity, safety, and dignity by providing direct support to transgender women navigating conditions of systemic exclusion, violence, and socioeconomic marginalization. Its programs are designed not only to address urgent needs, but also to create pathways toward long-term stability, autonomy, and opportunity.
THE COLLECTIVE was founded and is directed by Andrea Luna, a historic figure in trans activism in Mexico City. Born and raised in Iztapalapa, Andrea is a survivor of multiple forms of deeply entrenched structural violence, and her leadership is rooted in decades of community-based organizing. The organization originated from a project initially funded by the Global Fund in Mexico and currently receives support from the International Trans Fund.
Prior to its formal establishment, the activist work of Andrea and her peers dates back more than fifteen years, during which they conducted grassroots outreach to connect trans communities in Mexico City with HIV prevention resources and testing services. This work took place in spaces historically neglected by public institutions, including streets, detention centers, sex work settings, and public transportation systems, particularly the Mexico City Metro.
Over time, THE COLLECTIVE strengthened partnerships with strategic allies and developed sustainable community-based fundraising and resource mobilization strategies. Today, the organization serves multiple marginalized groups within the trans community, delivering programs that expand access to education, healthcare, and legal assistance for transgender women who are sex workers, older adults, people deprived of liberty, people living with HIV, and individuals facing extreme poverty.
A key pillar of THE COLLECTIVE’S work is the empowerment of emerging generations of Mexican trans leaders. Through technical assistance and leadership development, the organization supports other trans-led initiatives in replicating effective community-based models. Additionally, through the coordination of the NATIONAL TRANS COMMUNITY NETWORK and the ANNUAL NATIONAL GATHERING OF TRANS WOMEN, THE COLLECTIVE strengthens national collaboration, knowledge exchange, and collective advocacy capacity.
The project ¿Y QUÉ? is honored to provide concrete support to THE COLLECTIVE’S sustained and impactful work. All donations will directly fund its core programs in community accompaniment, prevention, education, legal support, and the creation of dignified life opportunities for transgender women living in contexts of high vulnerability.
