Imara Jones
“The desire to know what’s true, to understand it, and then the need to inform others about what I have come to know is what led me to journalism,” Imara Jones tells GO. An Emmy and Peabody award-winning journalist, Jones founded TransLash Media, a non-profit, narrative organization focused on equality, in order to combat “the misunderstanding and mischaracterization of our com- munity that is leading to violence, even death,” she says. “It is my firm belief that telling our stories is a way to counteract the ignorance about us and to help save lives.” Jones is widely acknowledged for her work sharing stories of the trans community. She was recently included in Politico’s “Recast Power List,” which recognizes power players focused on the intersection of race, politics, and policy. She appeared on the cover of Time in 2020, and is regularly featured in publications and on news shows, including The Nation, NPR, The Guardian, and others. Her work includes the Webby-nominated TransLash Podcast with Imara Jones and the investigative series The Anti-Trans Hate Machine: A Plot Against Equality, which examines the rise of anti-trans legislation in state houses across the country. “I want to reach as many people as possible with the fundamental messages of hope about our community and the possibility of change which all trans people embody,” she says. But awards and accolades are only part of her success. The most rewarding aspects of her work “are the late night messages telling me that one of our documentaries has stopped someone from committing suicide or that our podcast has helped someone accept their child. Those quiet moments of hope and affirmation are by far the best part of my job.” –AB
