Sending Love from the Bottom of the World

In January, a group of queer and allied scientists and support staff at Amundsen-Scott South Pole Station, Antarctica gathered for a special act of solidarity: writing letters of support to trans people around the world.

For Michael, the event organizer, this experience was a powerful way for a geographically isolated community to connect with a larger movement of care and affirmation.

“It’s been hard to be at the South Pole, so isolated from everything and disconnected from the world,” Michael shared. “You can feel quite powerless. It was great for our staff to have the opportunity to feel like we really can make a difference, we can do something meaningful and valuable and have an impact on someone else’s life even with how remote we are.”

The event also carried personal significance for Michael—his twin brother is trans, and he has witnessed firsthand how dehumanizing it can feel to navigate gender-affirming care.

“I know that navigating access to care you need can be so impersonal and confusing at times. He’s told me he feels like a cog in a machine so often. It's easy to think nobody cares," Michael says.  "This experience was a way for us to show people that there are human beings on the other side of the world who get it, who care about you."

This moment also marked an exciting milestone: thanks to the crew at the South Pole, letters for Point of Pride’s letter-writing project have now been written from every continent on Earth.

Since we first launched letter-writing in 2017, these messages have reached thousands of trans people in 127 countries and counting—always carrying the same sentiment: that trans people are loved, valid, and never alone.

Michael’s message for trans people everywhere? Queer and trans people can do absolutely anything.

“Being down here has really shown me that queer and trans people can do absolutely anything. It’s been so inspiring to see the trans joy, successes, accomplishments, all around badassery—it's inspiring," says Michael.

“Despite the challenges that trans people face today, there is also trans excellence out there. Holding onto our collective power gives me such hope.”