Laverne Cox Reflects on Trans Visibility, Backlash, and Her New Memoir

In a New Yorker interview, actress and activist Laverne Cox discusses her new memoir "Transcendent," reflecting on her career from "Orange Is the New Black" (2013) to the present. She addresses the decline of opportunities amid anti-trans backlash, her decision to be transparent about pay, and the conditional nature of corporate "rainbow capitalism." Cox recounts her childhood conversion therapy experience in 1980, her mother's intervention, and the subsequent self-policing. She details her time as a club kid in 1990s New York, including encounters with Michael Alig and Angel Menendez. Cox discusses her friendship with bell hooks, her relationship with a conservative cop ("Giuseppe"), and the challenges of filming "Clean Slate" in Savannah, which evoked her Mobile, Alabama childhood. She critiques the current political moment as "fascist," drawing parallels to Nazi Germany, and emphasizes the need to "rehumanize" trans people. Cox also shares her fashion influences, naming Thierry Mugler, John Galliano, and Alexander McQueen as her top designers.