The legendary Sandy Stone returns to the Plutopia podcast this time as we discuss “Girl Island,” an upcoming partially-animated film based on her life and early visions of gender identity. We also discuss gender roles, trans rights, political oppression, and much more. We dive into everything from gender roles and trans rights to political power, patriarchy, and the weirdness of independent media. Sandy shares sharp insights on how power imbalances shape our ideas about sex and gender, reflects on the resilience of the trans community, and takes some well-aimed shots at the forces trying to erase progress. It’s a wild, thoughtful, and deeply honest conversation—part personal story, part cultural critique, and all Sandy.

Sandy Stone:

When we talk about what is gender and where does it come from — one of the places — not the only place, but one of the places gender comes from, it’s a very powerful place — is from power imbalances. That’s a very strong way that in our society desire gets constructed, whether you know it or not, sexual tension. Anyway, that’s one way that we construct sexual difference, is through power relationships. And ultimately when I say that, what I’m getting back to is patriarchy, obviously, to the fact that most power structures are controlled by men, and therefore men generally get to say what sex and gender are.