Interview with June Chua, Founder, The T Project
In this exclusive interview between SPEQ:TRUM Creator & Host Jamie Nonis and June Chua, Founder of The T Project, we talk about her life transitioning from a former sex worker to setting up Singapore’s first and only social service and homeless shelter for the transgender community. June is today an award-winning LGBTQIA+ activist as the recipient of the ‘AWARE Champion for Gender Equality & Justice’ Award for her outreach and advocacy work.
Q: Let’s start with your background as a former sex worker. It’s quite inspiring how you managed to turn your life around and create this initiative that’s much bigger than yourself with The T Project. Can you share your personal journey? What were some of the obstacles and challenges?
June: Okay, I have issue with “turn my life around”. I never turn my life around. I don’t need to turn my life around because I don’t see sex work as wrong. So I found it’s a very natural progression for me from doing sex work and then to help my community because while I was doing my sex work, I see a lot of unfairness, I see how my community suffers, especially those that are not as lucky as me, especially those who are not as strong and do not have a coping mechanism. I think that’s the natural progression for me for me to progress from a sex worker to someone who helps sex worker.
Q: Was there was a turning point, though, where you decided you wanted to stop doing sex work?
J: The turning point is very mundane. It’s like I’m 38 years old and I asked myself, “Am I going to continue to do sex work and…”, because sex work to me is very repetitive and very mundane. It’s not as colourful and eventful as you all want to make it sound to be. What I can tell you is, I think, when I hit 38, I got a mid-life crisis. So I was telling myself, should I continue to do sex work and get the limited edition bag, or should I do something meaningful with my life? So I choose the latter and I guess the rest is history.
Q: You founded The T Project four years ago — is the homeless shelter for transwomen only?
J: It’s a transgender shelter so it’s inclusive; for transgender men and transgender women. But so far, it just so happens that a lot of transgender women need help more, and I’ve only ever had one transgender man stay at my shelter. It’s entirely funded by the generosity of the “conservative” majority, the “conservative” public.
Q: Is there a criteria for whether the shelter will take a trans person?
J: No, I think the most two important [criteria] is you must be above 18 because we don’t want to corrupt the children and then you must identify as trans. So whether you transition already, whether you look like your preferred gender, it doesn’t matter to me — as long as you identify as a trans. And the most important, of course, is that you must be homeless. Whether they transition or not, it’s not important to me. If they self-identify as trans, then it’s fine. So if you are a trans — you say you are a transwoman and you come with a beard and you still haven’t transition — it’s fine with me. As long as you identify as a transgender person.
Q: What was your main objective when you set up The T Project and what did you want to achieve?
J: That time, I didn’t know. I just wanted to do it. After so many years going around to talks, conferences, what has been at the back of my mind is I actually wanted an organisation that is trans-led — a transgender person in a decision-making position — that caters specifically to the trans community be it in the areas of sexual healthcare or a shelter, which is what I’m doing also with Alicia Community Centre.
Jamie interviewing June at the Alicia Community Centre.
Q: What does the shelter offer residents? Are counselling services, for instance, offered to the residents?
J: My shelter was started in 2014 by word of mouth, and referral is always by word-of-mouth by the transgender community itself. When we had a successful fundraising in 2016, we established a new shelter. We had a 5-member committee at that time and we decided to have more structure so we came up with shelter rules and shelter admission criteria. We also wanted all the residents to be assigned a social worker. If they are not referred by a social worker, they’re going to be assigned a social worker, so we’re going to do the referral. So if you need help, we’ll refer you to the social worker for financial aid. If you need medical support, we will refer you to the medical social worker. They can also get job assistance through the social worker. So [our shelter is] a temporary a safe space for them.
Q: Do you partner with any social welfare organisations for this?
J: No. The social work sector knows about me because I’ve given talks and some actually have transgender clients who are homeless so they will refer them to me. So Serangoon Moral [Family Service Centre], Tan Tock Seng [Hospital], IMH [Institute of Mental Health], they all refer their clients to me.
Q: Interesting. How many residents do you have at the shelter?
J: The shelter is in the Geylang area. So far, I have supported 10 residents. Homelessness is actually the tip of the iceberg. Other challenges that I see my residents have is addiction and mental and substance abuse issues. And, of course, discrimination and unemployment issues. So it’s not only like they are homeless and they find a job then they’re not homeless. It’s truly more than that.
“Homelessness is actually the tip of the iceberg. Other challenges that I see my residents have is addiction and mental and substance abuse issues. And, of course, discrimination and unemployment issues. ”
Q: Is there a timeline that they get to stay or can they stay as long as needed?
J: We decided on 6 months. So after 6 months, we do a review to see whether to extend their stay. During their review period, we also expect their social worker to write a letter of recommendation for us, to explain to us why the resident need to further extend their stay. So it will be a case-by-case review.
Q: So it’s more of an emergency accommodation option if needed?
J: We just provide a safe space for them. If got emergency, like, if you were chased out by your parents suddenly, you can stay at my shelter for seven days, regardless of whether you fit the criteria or not.
Q: Talk to me about the transformations you witness in the residents from having this shelter as a safe space.
J: Before they [come to the shelter], they were staying under a bridge or they were staying in IMH. So they don’t know where to go, they don’t know who to turn to because their families have already forsaken them. And there’s a lack of support for them in [the] social service sector. So when they come to stay at my shelter, amazing transformation [takes place]. There’s finally stability in their life. So the funny thing is, once they stay at my shelter, they actually want to faster go to the police station and change the address on their IC [identity cards]. Because finally they have an address and suddenly, they can receive mail. So it’s very amazing.
Before that, their address is their family house like 20, 30 years ago, which may not even be there [anymore], as the parents or the family may have moved out already. So what we take for granted like opening the letterbox and [receiving] mail from friends and government… they actually lose out on a lot of things like government [assistance] because no letters are sent to them. We will tell them nicely that we don’t let them use the shelter address in their IC, but they can use our address as a mailing address.
When they have stability in their life, they will automatically think of their future. So you cannot ask them to look for [a] job when they don’t even know where they are going to stay the next day.
“When they come to stay at my shelter, amazing transformation [takes place] as there’s finally stability in their life. And when they have stability in their life, they will automatically think of their future. ”
Q: Have you seen them transform in terms of their level of confidence?
J: Yes. I will say that I see them [as] more calm and more relaxed because they know that when they go out, they have a bed [to come back to]. They don’t have to worry about where the next meal [is] coming from, and they don’t have to worry where are they going to stay next. So I see them much happier staying at the shelter.
Q: So the shelter also provides meals?
J: Yes, my shelter also provide meals, as I receive donations from the generous majority public. There’s a kitchen so they can cook.
Q: So, June, what does it mean for you personally to see them go through that journey of transformation?
J: I feel very blessed. When I see so many things lacking in their lives, I look at myself [and] I feel very blessed. At the same time, I also feel that if I’ve made a mistake in my life, that could easily be me. I could be them if I make a mistake in my life or I make a wrong decision. So helping them is like helping myself. They’re perhaps helping me in a parallel universe. So I’m very happy helping them because it’s like as though helping myself also.
Q: Why do you think we need something like this in Singapore?
J: Because for the past 50 years, there [hasn’t been any] social service support for the transgender community. When I go to all the LGBT talks and conferences, we talk about the lack of social services or the improvements that need to be made for the community, but when it comes to the transgender community, there has been zero social service support in Singapore for the transgender community; be it housing, be it sexual health education, be it HIV education. There was no transgender programme, which is very sad and very strange at the same time to me.
Q: But can’t transgender individuals get help from other non-profit LGBTQ+ organisations like Oogachaga?
J: Oogachaga, yes. But they’re LGBT, they’re not transgender-specific. So we are part of the LGBT family, but transgender [individuals'] have special needs and wants that the LGB may not be aware of.
Q: Could you shed some light on what these special needs and wants are, for example?
J: Like in coming out to family and employers. As transgender, our gender identity is very forefront. We can have breasts and long hair but [our] gender marker is still male. So [when] we go to look for jobs, we don’t have the luxury to choose to hide ourselves. The gays and lesbians can choose to hide their sexual orientation but we cannot hide. So there’s one thousand and one reasons for the employer to not employ us.
“As transgender, our gender identity is very forefront. We can have breasts and long hair but [our] gender marker is still male. So [when] we go to look for jobs, we don’t have the luxury to choose to hide ourselves. The gays and lesbians can choose to hide their sexual orientation but we cannot hide. So there’s one thousand and one reasons for the employer to not employ us.”
Q: What do you think is the greatest misconception people have about the transgender community in Singapore?
J: I don’t know about the greatest misconception but I always feel that the public always sees our gender identity first. If they see my gender identity first, they always see limitation. But if they see me as a person first, as an individual first, then you will see infinite possibilities. So because our gender is so upfront, they judge us by our gender identity and they don’t see us as a person, as an individual. So when they want to know me, they will definitely want to ask about my journey, when I take hormones, if I underwent SRS — sex reassignment surgery. But that’s not important. That doesn’t make you understand me as a person. So nobody — in interviews so far — ask me what’s my hobby, what movie I like. It’s good if they ask me about my work and I hope that through my work you can understand me more as a person.
“If they see my gender identity first, they always see limitation. But if they see me as a person first, as an individual first, then you will see infinite possibilities. ”
Q: So, June, outside of The T Project, what are your hobbies?
J: I like to read books; detective books.
Q: Who’s your favourite author?
J: My favourite author is Ruth Rendell, who passed away. So now I’m reading J. K. Rowling’s book [that she wrote under the pseudonym] Robert Galbraith: Lethal White. So I like to read books and I have my dog, Pepper.
Q: What breed is it?
J: Boston Terrier. I adopted her from my late sister, so I see her as extension of my sister; I see my sister still hasn’t passed yet. My sister is just in a different form.
Q: Do you mind talking about your sister?
J: I don’t mind.
Q: Okay. So you named the community centre after your sister, Alicia. Could you share more about what the centre offers and what you hope to achieve with it?
J: We actually wanted to name the centre as a Transgender Resource and Research Centre because it [would] appeal more to the funders but later we decided with the [word] “transgender”, who [would] want to come? So I came up with the Alicia Community Centre; very generic and also pays tribute to my sister. It’s [more than] 3 years of her anniversary passing, so I thought it’s about time to immortalise her.
Q: That’s very cool that you’ve done that.
J: Thank you.
Q: So what do you hope this space to be for the community?
J: Another safe space, another option for my community because I’m all about options. Another place for my community to come besides online, another safe space for them to mingle. [There’s] a transgender library so they can get some transgender literature written by local authors or [authors] indigenous to Singapore [in a] transgender context. Hopefully, lah. Because [it’s] very difficult to find transgender authors in Singapore. And then [there’s] a museum that showcases transgender history that is indigenous to our Singapore history. There’s also a conference space and any LBGT group that wants to hold small workshops and mini meetings can rent or use my space. We’re also offering peer-to-peer counselling. So if a transgender person wants to be counselled by a transgender counsellor, they can make an appointment with us.
Jamie inspecting the Frida Kahlo figurine at the library in Alicia Community Centre.
Q: So you actually have a transgender counsellor?
J: Yes, a transgender certified counsellor and also a transgender psychologist.
Q: Cool. So what are your hopes for Singapore, in how she will progress or evolve with regard to these matters?
J: I just hope that 50 years down the road — you know, we Chinese have a tradition where we give red eggs when the child is [born] male — so when the parents discover the child is transgender, they will give red eggs also
Q: So cute.
J: Hopefully can, lah. Don’t know, lah.
Q: Maybe you should start a little movement, like a Red Egg campaign.
J: Maybe. Who knows? Maybe the red egg will be a symbol for us.
If [we talk about a] more inclusive society, it’s fine if society still doesn’t accept us. But they have to understand that we are an intricate part of the community. We are already inside the community. We’re not asking for you to accept us or not, because we’re inside already. We just want to ask [for] a bit more understanding of our community. You can still have your views, fine, just don’t impose it and think that everybody should think like you. And perhaps also [for] more transgender-specific healthcare services, [a] transgender-specific community centre, transgender-friendly swimming pools. So I’m looking for all these transgender-specific things.
Q: Last question. For any listeners who may be confused or questioning whether they are trans, can you recommend any good resources online or offline that you can recommend, or do you have any advice for them?
J: If you are confused whether you are trans, that means you are trans already. You just need more people to affirm you. [Make an appointment with] our transgender counsellor because there are certain questions I’m sure you want to know, which only a transgender person can answer. So come to my safe space and if you have any questions, you can talk to the transgender person [and have your questions answered]. If you are trans man and the person is trans woman, we can refer someone who can answer your questions. And we also have a transgender library, so you can find resources and read books about transgender here.
Q: Before we wrap up, is there anything else that you want to add?
J: I just want to say, leave the sexual orientation, gender identity and gender expression [concerns] to us. You don’t have to worry about all this. You just see us as a person. We know how to define our journey, we know how to walk our journey. So you don’t have to worry for us.
“Let us be who we are, then we also let you be who you are. Then the world will be better already. ”
Transcribed by Natasha Pestana