Ever since I was a little kid, I have been changing my name (sometimes on a daily basis...). But back then, I didn't understand what or where that desire stemmed from. Back then, my deadname (let's pretend it was Anastasia)... Anastasia was the name of the girl it was my job, as a child, to pretend to be. I knew I wasn't a girl, but as a dutiful actor who didn't realize he could decline the role, I kept pretending to be Anastasia. But once I was older and was able to understand who I truly am, I was able to shed my deadname forever.

I finally have the chance to legitimize one of the myriads of name ideas I had over all those years. And now, changing my name LEGALLY is an important way to help affirm my identity. But dropping "Anastasia" is more than just a way to reinvent myself; it is more than just a way to avoid being misgendered. It is shedding a huge weight of data, expectations, rote memorizations, gender training. It is like taking my childhood back from female socialization and affirming who I have always been.

Being able to shed my deadname forever is important but expensive. And yes, I can petition the courts to waive the fee to change my name on the grounds that I am of low-income status as well as transgender. But with our current political environment, I fear that the process of asking the courts to waive the fee will move too slowly and I would lose the RIGHT to change my name and gender marker legally. So I am asking y'all, my family, my friends, and my community, to help me raise the funds necessary to get my name and gender marker legally changed ASAP, before my RIGHT to do so is unconstitutionally taken from me.