Adela Vázquez (November 13, 1958 – October 11, 2024) was a Cuban-American

transgender A transgender (often shortened to trans) person has a gender identity different from that typically associated with the sex they were sex assignment, assigned at birth. The opposite of ''transgender'' is ''cisgender'', which describes perso ...

activist Activism consists of efforts to promote, impede, direct or intervene in social, political, economic or environmental reform with the desire to make changes in society toward a perceived common good. Forms of activism range from mandate build ...

and performer.Vázquez, Adela. "Finding a Home in Transgender Activism in San Francisco." In Queer Brown Voices: Personal Narratives of Latina/o LGBT Activism, edited by Uriel Quesada, Letitia Gomez, and Salvador Vidal-Ortiz. Austin: University of Texas Press, 2015. Hailing from

Cuba Cuba, officially the Republic of Cuba, is an island country, comprising the island of Cuba (largest island), Isla de la Juventud, and List of islands of Cuba, 4,195 islands, islets and cays surrounding the main island. It is located where the ...

during a time of political uprising, Vázquez was one of 125,000 people who sought asylum and migrated in the Mariel Boat lifts in 1980. Local to San Francisco's

gay ''Gay'' is a term that primarily refers to a homosexual person or the trait of being homosexual. The term originally meant 'carefree', 'cheerful', or 'bright and showy'. While scant usage referring to male homosexuality dates to the late ...

scene, Vázquez began to organize with

HIV The human immunodeficiency viruses (HIV) are two species of '' Lentivirus'' (a subgroup of retrovirus) that infect humans. Over time, they cause acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (AIDS), a condition in which progressive failure of the im ...

prevention organization

Proyecto ContraSIDA Por Vida Proyecto ContraSIDA Por Vida (also known as PCPV and Proyecto) was a non-profit HIV-prevention agency located in the Mission District of San Francisco that provided community-based healthcare for the Latino/a and LGBT communities. It was one of se ...

(also known as PCPV, or Proyecto) and became a community activist for

transgender rights The legal status of transgender people varies greatly around the world. Some countries have enacted laws protecting the rights of transgender individuals, but others have criminalized their gender identity or expression. In many cases, transg ...

.Rodríguez, Juana María. Queer Latinidad: Identity Practices, Discursive Spaces. New York: NYU Press, 2003.

Early life

In 1958,

Fidel Castro Fidel Alejandro Castro Ruz (13 August 1926 – 25 November 2016) was a Cuban politician and revolutionary who was the leader of Cuba from 1959 to 2008, serving as the prime minister of Cuba from 1959 to 1976 and President of Cuba, president ...

organized the

July 26th Movement The 26 July Movement (; M-26-7) was a Cuban vanguard revolutionary organization and later a political party led by Fidel Castro. The movement's name commemorates the failed 1953 attack on the Moncada Barracks in Santiago de Cuba, part of an att ...

to overthrow Fulgencio Batista. Vázquez was born in 1958, and during her birth, homes were burned and cities were destroyed because of the revolution. Vázquez was born out of wedlock and was adopted by her grandfather and grandmother, with whom she lived. Raised in

Camagüey Camagüey () is a city and municipality in central Cuba and is the nation's third-largest city with more than 333,000 inhabitants. It is the capital of the Camagüey Province. It was founded as Santa María del Puerto del Príncipe in 1514, by Sp ...

, Cuba, Vázquez spent her childhood walking around downtown and the Casino Campreste. She encountered a large Cuban LGBT community, eventually being baptized as "La Chica Streisandisima" at the swan fountain in Casino Campreste. Her early involvement with the LGBT community in Camagüey and emigration to the United States was the influence for Jaime Cortez's graphic novel ''Sexile''. In Cuba, Vázquez was inducted into the

military A military, also known collectively as armed forces, is a heavily armed, highly organized force primarily intended for warfare. Militaries are typically authorized and maintained by a sovereign state, with their members identifiable by a d ...

but was ineligible for service because of her homosexuality. After being denied, Vázquez committed herself to education and worked toward her teaching degree at Destacamento Pedagogico Manuel Ascunce Domenech.

Migration

On April 4 of 1980, Castro's government announced that any Cuban wanting to leave to the United States was free to go. Castro did this in response to five Cubans who stole a bus and crashed into the Embassy of Peru in Havana, seeking asylum. Vázquez was one of the people who sought asylum as part of the

Mariel Boatlift The Mariel boatlift () was a mass emigration of Cubans who traveled from Cuba's Mariel Harbor to the United States between April 15 and October 31, 1980. The term "" is used to refer to these refugees in both Spanish and English. While the ex ...

and emigrated to

Florida Florida ( ; ) is a U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern region of the United States. It borders the Gulf of Mexico to the west, Alabama to the northwest, Georgia (U.S. state), Georgia to the north, the Atlantic ...

. Leaving behind family and belongings, Vázquez departed from the port of El Mosquito, a beach she recalled as unsafe and overcrowded. Her experiences on the Mariel boat for eight hours were less positive until she docked at the island of Key West, Monroe County, Florida. Vázquez was moved to the Cuban refugee center of

Fort Chaffee Fort Chaffee Joint Maneuver Training Center, also known as Fort Chaffee, is an Arkansas Army National Guard Military base, installation located in western Arkansas, adjacent to the city of Fort Smith, Arkansas, Fort Smith. Established as Camp C ...

in the city of

Fort Smith, Arkansas Fort Smith is the List of municipalities in Arkansas, third-most populous city in Arkansas, United States, and one of the two county seats of Sebastian County, Arkansas, Sebastian County. As of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, the pop ...

and recalls being greeted by the

Ku Klux Klan The Ku Klux Klan (), commonly shortened to KKK or Klan, is an American Protestant-led Christian terrorism, Christian extremist, white supremacist, Right-wing terrorism, far-right hate group. It was founded in 1865 during Reconstruction era, ...

that surrounded the center. Spending a month and half there, Vazquez's experience were generally positive as she recalled the center providing adequate healthcare, churches, and food for refugees. In 1980, Vázquez was sponsored by the

Los Angeles LGBT Center The Los Angeles LGBT Center (previously known as the Los Angeles Gay and Lesbian Center) is a provider of programs and services for lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender people. The organization's work spans four categories, including health, so ...

to travel to

California California () is a U.S. state, state in the Western United States that lies on the West Coast of the United States, Pacific Coast. It borders Oregon to the north, Nevada and Arizona to the east, and shares Mexico–United States border, an ...

. In

Los Angeles Los Angeles, often referred to by its initials L.A., is the List of municipalities in California, most populous city in the U.S. state of California, and the commercial, Financial District, Los Angeles, financial, and Culture of Los Angeles, ...

, she met Rolando Victoria who would become her drag godmother until Victoria's death in 1982. While in California, Vazquez took jobs as a gift wrapper for

Neiman Marcus Neiman Marcus is an American department store chain founded in 1907 in Dallas, Texas by Herbert Marcus, his sister Carrie Marcus Neiman, and her husband Abraham Lincoln Neiman. It has been owned by Saks Global, a Corporate spin-off, spin-o ...

, a hairdresser, and hotel clerk after she moved in 1983 to the Tenderloin district in San Francisco.

Activism

Vázquez's activist work began in 1992 when she was crowned Miss Gay Latina, by Instituto Familiar De La Raza—a community based health and wellness center.Quesada, Uriel, Letitia Gomez, and Salvador Vidal-Ortiz, eds. ''Queer Brown Voices: Personal Narratives of Latina/o LGBT Activism''. University of Texas Press, 2015. Post her crowning, Vázquez began to organize around

rights and issues. She quickly took notice of the large health disparities in the trans community and the need to mobilize. Vázquez was invited by trans activist

Tamara Ching Tamara Ching is an American trans woman and San Francisco Bay Area transgender activist. Also known as the "God Mother of Polk treet, she is an advocate for trans, HIV, and sex work-related causes. Early life and education Ching was born in 19 ...

to speak to the issues the trans Latina community faced at the Human Rights Commission at San Francisco's City Hall. Among her many efforts, Vázquez protested the employment discrimination faced by trans people and their removal from the workplace because of their gender queerness. AdelaAtProyecto

Through her outreach, Vázquez met a

drag queen A drag queen is a person, usually male, who uses Drag (entertainment), drag clothing and makeup to imitate and often exaggerate Femininity, female gender signifiers and gender roles for entertainment purposes. Historically, drag queens have ...

by the name of La Condonera "The Condom Women," otherwise known as Hector León. Together, Hector and Vázquez formed a group called Las AtreDivas (a

portmanteau In linguistics, a blend—also known as a blend word, lexical blend, or portmanteau—is a word formed by combining the meanings, and parts of the sounds, of two or more words together.

of the Spanish word atrevida—daring—and diva), which consisted of four drag queens. Las AtreDivas organized and presented on Spanish language shows at the gay bar

Esta Noche Esta or ESTA may refer to: * Esta (given name), including a list of people with the name * Esta Brook, a pen name of American novelist and short story writer Lizzie P. Evans-Hansell * ESTA Holding, a Ukrainian real estate company * Electronic Sy ...

, highlighting safer sex practices in order to bring awareness to

AIDS The HIV, human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) is a retrovirus that attacks the immune system. Without treatment, it can lead to a spectrum of conditions including acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (AIDS). It is a Preventive healthcare, pr ...

and contribute funds for local organizations like Proyecto ContraSIDA Por Vida. She is credited with being the first Trans Latina employed to address issues of HIV in San Francisco. Vázquez, also known by her drag name "Adela Holyday" was called a "top notch "drag" performer" and an "aesthetic marker" at night clubs.Rodríguez, Juana María. Queer Latinidad: Identity Practices, Discursive Spaces. New York: NYU Press, 2003.http://nyupress.org/books/9780814775509/ AtreDivas

Vázquez was centrally involved with

, an HIV prevention organization. Vázquez volunteered for Proyecto beginning in 1992 and later on became the first

trans Trans- is a Latin prefix meaning "across", "beyond", or "on the other side of". Used alone, trans may refer to: Sociology * Trans, a sociological term which may refer to: ** Transgender, people who identify themselves with a gender that di ...

Latina Latina or Latinas most often refers to: * Latinas, a demographic group in the United States * Latino (demonym), a term used in the United States for people with cultural ties to Latin America. *Latin Americans Latina and Latinas may also refer ...

employee, as their outreach coordinator. To combat the AIDS crisis, Vázquez and Proyecto organized around a multidimensional need to outreach. Vázquez's work was highlighted in

Juana María Rodríguez Juana María Rodríguez is a Cuban-American professor of Ethnic Studies, Gender and Women's Studies, and Performance Studies at the University of California, Berkeley. Her scholarly writing in queer theory, critical race theory, and performance s ...

book ''Queer Latinidad: Identity Practices, Discursive Spaces''. In her chapter, "Activism and Identity," Rodríguez highlights the ways Proyecto offered a dynamic, culturally situated, queer approach to community health. Vázquez's community work continued throughout the 1990s. Vázquez was on a committee of community advisory members for "The Transgender Community Health Project" for the University of San Francisco Department of Public Health. Vázquez later on went to serve as a Latino AIDS Education and Prevention Program Coordinator at the Instituto Familiar de la Raza, Inc., a non-profit dedicated to improving the wellness of Latino people in San Francisco.

Influence and Impact

''Diagnosing Difference'' (Film) - In 2009, Vázquez starred in a film titled ''Diagnosing Difference''.The documentary film highlights the stories of thirteen

and

genderqueer Non-binary or genderqueer gender identities are those that are outside the male/female gender binary. Non-binary identities often fall under the transgender umbrella since non-binary people typically identify with a gender that is differ ...

people and the impact of Gender Identity Disorder (G.I.D). In the film, Director Annalise Ophelian aims to humanize the conversation around Gender variance by featuring people who don't identify with the gender they were born with, rather than

psychologist A psychologist is a professional who practices psychology and studies mental states, perceptual, cognitive, emotional, and social processes and behavior. Their work often involves the experimentation, observation, and explanation, interpretatio ...

and

psychiatrist A psychiatrist is a physician who specializes in psychiatry. Psychiatrists are physicians who evaluate patients to determine whether their symptoms are the result of a physical illness, a combination of physical and mental ailments or strictly ...

s leading the conversation. In the film, Vázquez discusses the complexities of

gender dysphoria Gender dysphoria (GD) is the distress a person experiences due to inconsistency between their gender identitytheir personal sense of their own genderand their sex assigned at birth. The term replaced the previous diagnostic label of gender i ...

along with the pressure of needing to

pass Pass, PASS, The Pass or Passed may refer to: Places *Pass, County Meath, a townland in Ireland *Pass, Poland, a village in Poland *El Paso, Texas, a city which translates to "The Pass" * Pass, an alternate term for a number of straits: see Li ...

. ''Sexile/Sexilio, 2004'' (Comic): - ''Sexile/Sexilio'' is a bilingual graphic novel by

Jaime Cortez Jaime Cortez is a Chicano-American graphic novelist, visual artist, writer, teacher, and performer. Cortez is also known for his role as an LGBT rights activist, and HIV/AIDS prevention work. Early years Cortez was born in the agricultural town ...

that illustrates the life of Vázquez. Cortez uses

comics a Media (communication), medium used to express ideas with images, often combined with text or other visual information. It typically the form of a sequence of Panel (comics), panels of images. Textual devices such as speech balloons, Glo ...

to illustrates various moments of Vázquez's life: her birth, Cuban school life, sexual explorations, Mariel Boat migration, and many others. ''Sexilio'' came out of collaboration with Gay Men's Health Crisis. Gay Men's Health Crisis has been an advocate and leading contributor to HIV/AIDS prevention. ''Sexilio'' was nominated as the National Association of Public Libraries' Queer Book of the Year. ''¡Cuéntamelo!: Oral Histories by LGBT Latino Immigrants'' 2013, ''(Oral History)'' edited by Julián Delgado Lopera. Vázquez's

oral history Oral history is the collection and study of historical information from people, families, important events, or everyday life using audiotapes, videotapes, or transcriptions of planned interviews. These interviews are conducted with people who pa ...

was recorded by Delgado Lopera, along with six other Latino immigrants in this bilingual collection. An image of Adela graces the cover. ''Queer Brown Voices,'' 2015 (Book) - ''Queer Brown Voices: Personal Narratives of Latina/o LGBT Activism,'' edited by Letitia Gomez, Uriel Quesada, and Salvador Vidal-Ortiz is a collection of fourteen queer Latino Activist personal narratives and their impact on their communities. Vázquez is the only trans Latina voice in the book. ''Puta Life: Seeing Latinas, Working Sex,'' ''2023'' (Book)--Adela's life is the subject of one chapter of the book ''Puta Life: Seeing Latinas, Working Sex'', by

. In it, Rodríguez compares the many different narrative accounts of Vázquez's life with the digital account she maintained on Facebook to argue about the limits of representation and to argue for the decriminalization of sex work. ''Jose Sarria History Maker Award'' (2024). Adela was honored in 2024 by the Ken Jones Heritage of Pride Awards with the Jose Sarria History Maker Award by the

San Francisco Pride The San Francisco Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, and Transgender Pride Celebration (formerly "International Lesbian and Gay Freedom Day", "Gay Freedom Day", and "Christopher Street West"), usually known as San Francisco Pride, is a pride parade and fe ...

.“SF Pride Honors Community Leaders :: Bay Area Reporter.” Accessed October 14, 2024. https://www.ebar.com/story.php?ch=news&id=331845.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Vazquez, Adela Living people 1958 births People from Camagüey Cuban emigrants to the United States American LGBTQ rights activists American HIV/AIDS activists LGBTQ Hispanic and Latino American people Cuban transgender people LGBTQ people from California American transgender women Transgender rights activists 20th-century Cuban LGBTQ people 21st-century Cuban LGBTQ people Cuban women activists