PHOTO ESSAY: A young trans woman's journey, and her latest destination: World Pride in Washington
WASHINGTON (AP) — As they get ready in their hotel room, Bella Bautista trades makeup tips with the roommate she has just met.
Bautista, her cheekbones high and her confidence glowing, asks her roommate to curl her highlighted hair in the back. Jae Douglas obliges cheerfully.
Bautista, 22, is a college cheerleader turned pageant contestant. Last month, she competed in the Miss Supranational USA pageant in Miami, representing Tennessee. She hails from Cartersville, a small Georgia town north of Atlanta. She works as a social media intern for the Global Trans Equity Project.
She has come to Washington, D.C., to attend World Pride activities in the wake of the Trump administration's policies legislating against gender-affirming care and its rhetoric against transgender girls in sports. During a speech she delivers to the trans community she announces what could be the anthem for her audience: 'I'm not asking for permission to be who I am, I am who I am.'
Bautista says she is the first and only transgender woman to compete in the Miss Supranational pageant. It is part of a lengthier process of embracing her identity — both within herself and to the world.
Marching in an impending rain with a hundred others from the National Trans Visibility March, en route to the Lincoln Memorial to join the World Pride rally, Bella reflected, 'I'm not fighting for myself anymore. I'm fighting for a larger cause alongside other people, which is good for a change. You know, being the only transgender person from my small town, it's different to be in the capital of the USA. But so many people that are also fighting alongside with me are here, and have that same struggle.'
'In previous years, I felt more compelled to live my life stealth,' Bautista says. 'But with everything going on with the current administration, I felt the need to give an actual face to the issue.'
And so she has come to World Pride, determined to be present and to fly the flag of who she is.
Coming out was a process
When Bautista transitioned during her senior year of high school in 2020, there were many pro-Trump demonstrations by students at her school during school hours. So she started a 'diversity club' to create a safe place for LGBTQ+ students and students of color.
'I came out to my mom when I was 13, and I asked her, 'Am I a girl?′ She said she didn't know — 'That's something we need to look into.' I didn't know what being trans meant or anything like that. I've always been flexible with my gender and sexuality.'
Puberty was an upsetting time for her, before she was able to access gender-affirming care. 'Having male hormones in my body gave me a lot of anxiety, dysphoria. And I felt that testosterone was going to destroy my body,' she says. With her family's assent, she ordered hormones online and medically transitioned at 17, during her senior year.
As a gamer, she chose the name 'Bella' online. It stuck.
'When I went to college I chose that name and told people, 'Hi, I am Bella, I'm a woman.' And I was stealth. No one on campus knew I was trans at the start. I just really wanted to live a normal college life, be a normal college girl.'
But things changed during her second year at college. She awakened to all the 'harmful stereotypes' — and realized she could use them to help others.
'People would say that I don't look trans, I don't sound trans, so for me to be openly trans, it gives people more perspective,' she says. 'I'm a normal college girl. I'm a cheerleader. This is what I look and sound like. It really resonates with both political parties.'
This past winter, she decided to testify at the Georgia State Capitol about her experience as a young trans woman athlete. It was illuminating for her.
'I had to speak in front of Republican members and I would run into them in the hallways or the elevators, or outside the bathroom, and they'd say, 'Oh, you're testifying against my bill but you're amazing, I loved your speech. Politicians politicize trans rights to gain votes. A big part of my platform is saying that my trans identify is not a political agenda for either side.'
She later began an organization called 'This Does Not Define Me,' referring to her experiences with PTSD, a speech impediment, being Mexican American and fighting trans stereotypes. The organization is about visibility — and a sense that the challenges faced by people, especially within the trans community, shouldn't define them.
'I hope that as more people meet me I put them at ease,' she says, 'and I get more empathy for the trans community. As people have more interactions with trans people they'll realize we are just normal people, with dreams, and this just happens to be my story.'
She dreams about the future, but is right here in the now
Bautista's own journey has defined her in many ways, though, including her professional aspirations. She hopes to become a civil rights attorney, to stand up for marginalized people, and someday to run for public office in Georgia.
That's later, though. Now, in a climate that doesn't always accept people like her, there is power in just being who she is.
'I think the most powerful thing that I can do right now as a young trans woman is to educate the populace that this is my experience and that I am so much more than just being trans.'
Back at the hotel, ahead of attending a conference for the National Trans Visibility March, Bautista has Douglas take a video of her striding through the lobby in a gold gown. It's for her Instagram feed. A family with two young children stops her. 'Are you a model? Where may we have seen you before?' Bella smiles demurely and says, 'Oh, I'm a pageant girl.'
She turns to a visitor. 'I get that a lot,' she says.
Coming to World Pride from a hometown where she's the only trans person is raising some questions for Bautista. Is allyship enough? Are gay members of the community fully backing trans rights? 'It really feels like it's LGB and then T,' she says. 'We are going through so much. I am hoping these people waving the gay flag are also considering what we are going through at this time.'
Add onto that her identity as a Mexican woman and — with the Trump administration's immigration crackdown on many fronts — there is still more she wants to advocate. So much more to do.
Bella Bautista was silent for a while. No longer.
'It feels good to represent … something bigger and to be proud of that,' she says.
'I kind of want to be like, 'I'm here,' you know?' she says. 'I'm just a normal college girl, I'm a cheerleader, I do pageants, and I happen to be trans, but that does not define my ability to succeed. Being trans is part of who I am, but I still deserve access to those dreams.'
___
This is a documentary photo story curated by AP photo editors.
___
Jacquelyn Martin is an Associated Press photographer based in Washington.
Hashtags

Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Yahoo
34 minutes ago
- Yahoo
Donald Trump Reveals What's Next For That Tesla He Bought From Elon Musk
Donald Trump on Monday addressed a question that's been on many people's minds ever since the president's spectacular blow-out with former so-called 'First Buddy' Elon Musk last week. Namely, what will happen to the red Tesla model S that Trump bought during a White House event in March to promote Musk's electric vehicle brand amid backlash to the billionaire's now-ended role leading the public spending-slashing, unofficial Department of Government Efficiency. 'Are you going to get rid of the Tesla and the Starlink system that you have here at the White House?' Trump was asked by a reporter. 'No, I haven't heard that,' the president replied. 'I mean, I may move the Tesla around a little bit but I don't think we'll be doing that with Starlink, it's a good service,' he added, the latter being Musk's satellite internet service. The journalist pressed Trump on the Tesla: 'Where are you going to move it to? Move it around? What do you mean?' Trump replied: 'I have a lot of locations. I've got so many locations I don't know what to do with them all.' Watch the exchange here: Earlier this month, a White House official had claimed that Trump would sell or give away the car. Karoline Leavitt Squirms Over Maria Bartiromo's Blunt Question About Elon Musk Trump Accused Of Inciting Violence With Chilling New Rhyme Mike Johnson Offers Bizarre Justification For ICE Masks. Backlash Follows. George Clooney Reveals The 1 Line He Used To Silence Protesters During Broadway Play
Yahoo
34 minutes ago
- Yahoo
Advocacy groups say utility regulators who praised rate freeze before hearing violated state rules
Georgia Public Service Commission Chairman Jason Shaw (right) and Commissioner Lauren 'Bubba' McDonald joined Gov. Brian Kemp for a May press conference to tout Georgia Power's proposed rate freeze. Stanley Dunlap/Georgia Recorder Three elected state regulators are being asked to recuse themselves from voting on a proposed agreement to freeze Georgia Power's rates over allegations that they violated state rules by publicly endorsing the proposal before an upcoming hearing. Advocacy groups filed a complaint Friday accusing Georgia Public Service Commission Chairman Jason Shaw, Commissioner Lauren 'Bubba' McDonald and Commissioner Tim Echols of showing bias by supporting a proposal between commission staff and Georgia Power that would freeze the base electric rates from 2026 to 2028. Shaw and McDonald are accused of violating state regulations by publicly endorsing the proposed three-year rate freeze during Gov. Brian Kemp's May press conference, which promoted the proposal. According to the complaint, state rules require commissioners to reserve their opinions on the merits of a matter until they have heard all the facts following a hearing. The four nonprofits behind the complaint – Georgians for Affordable Energy, Georgia Conservation Voters, Center for a Sustainable Coast, and Georgia Women's Action for New Directions – recommend that the commission cancel or deny the proposed rate freeze, which would result in a Georgia Power rate case later this year. Another option they floated would be to have an administrative law judge appointed to rule on the base rate plan. Patty Durand, founder of Georgians for Affordable Energy, said the commission should deny the rate freeze plan and instead require Georgia Power to hold its normal three-year rate case this fall that she said could result in ratepayers paying lower utility bills. That would also give regulators a chance to review the utility's commission-approved profit margin, which is currently set at 11.9%. 'Georgia Power's three-year rate freeze is a Trojan horse and absolutely devastating to Georgia Power ratepayers,' Durand said. 'They don't do this out of benevolence. They're a for-profit corporation always seeking to increase profits. This three-year rate freeze does that by locking in high profits through a return on equity that is far above industry norms and delivers $700 million in excess profits annually.' The complaint also refers to a quote from Echols in a May 27 Atlanta Journal-Constitution article about the proposed rate freeze. 'Freezing the rates for three years is the best thing we can do for ratepayers right now, and I have advocated for that incessantly,' Echols said in the article while discussing discount utility programs for seniors and low-income ratepayers. The three commissioners declined to comment on the pending complaint through a commission spokesperson. At the May press conference, Shaw said that freezing rates for 'three years is a very big deal for our state, and it's good for Georgians.' 'At the end of the day, we're going to have an open and transparent process hearing of this agreement,' Shaw also said. 'We're going to have a chance over the next few weeks to meet with all the stakeholders. If anyone has concerns about this agreement, we're going to sit down as we learn more about it ourselves, and have that normal open dialog that we have at the PSC.' Several consumer and environmental groups have expressed concerns regarding the timing of the rate freeze announcement and May press conference. Early voting for the June 17 primary election featuring two commission seats started a week after the press conference. Echols is the only commissioner named in the complaint who is up for reelection this year. Early voting ends Friday as Democratic candidates Peter Hubbard, Robert Jones, Keisha Sean Waites and Daniel Blackman run for the Public Service Commission against appointed Republican Commissioner Fitz Johnson in the Nov. 4 general election. Blackman is still fighting to stay on the ballot, though. A Fulton County Superior Court hearing is scheduled for Tuesday to hear Blackman's appeal after being disqualified for the Atlanta-based seat for failing to meet residency requirements. Georgia voters will also decide this month who will win the GOP primary for the District 2 race that covers eastern Georgia as Republican Commissioner Tim Echols faces challenger Lee Muns. The winner of the District 2 Republican primary will face Savannah Democratic candidate Alicia M. Johnson in the general election. The commission has come under fire for approving six Georgia Power rate hikes since late 2022 that have resulted in the typical household paying about $43 more per month on their electric bills. And bills could still increase, even with the rate freeze. Next year, Georgia Power will file cases with the commission seeking to recoup storm damage and overrun fuel expenses from customers. Georgia Power spokesman John Kraft said that the proposed agreement will balance the company's ability to provide affordable rates to customers while also supporting the growing demands from new customers. State regulators commissioners also adopted a rule earlier this year that requires large-use customers to pay their full electric service costs through Georgia Power. 'We're always working to keep energy reliable and affordable for customers, and this stipulated agreement means no base rate increases for three years – that's great news for every customer,' Kraft said. 'Reaching this agreement was just the start of an open and transparent process, leading up to a vote by the Georgia PSC, which will include opportunities for comment and input from intervenors and the public.' SUPPORT: YOU MAKE OUR WORK POSSIBLE
Yahoo
34 minutes ago
- Yahoo
Barrow County faces backlash over proposed cuts to school resource officer funding
The Brief Barrow County plans to reduce funding for school resource officers, supporting only 12 of 25 positions, reversing a previous cost-sharing agreement with the school board. The decision follows the Board of Education's approval of eight new officers after a deadly shooting, increasing community demand for enhanced school security. The proposed funding cut would shift over $800,000 in costs to the Barrow County School Board, prompting community rallies and calls for prioritizing long-term safety solutions. BARROW COUNTY, Ga. - A contentious funding debate in Barrow County has ignited community concern over proposed changes to school safety staffing, with parents rallying to oppose a county plan that would cut funding for school resource officers. SEE ALSO: Barrow County approves $182M budget for 2026 with no tax increase What we know The Barrow County Board of Commissioners is moving to scale back its share of funding for school resource officers, planning to support only 12 of the 25 positions beginning July 1. That marks a sharp reversal from a cost-sharing agreement established in 2017, in which the county and school board evenly split the cost of school-based law enforcement. The decision comes just months after the Board of Education approved eight new officers in the wake of a deadly shooting at Apalachee High School — an event that intensified community demands for heightened school security. What they're saying "Our students deserve to feel supported, safe and respected now more than ever," one parent said during a community rally Monday night. "Announcing budget cuts and reductions during the summer, when students should be enjoying a break, adds unnecessary stress and sends the wrong message about our priorities." The proposed shift would place more than $800,000 in additional costs on the Barrow County School Board to continue the existing level of officer staffing. School officials have stated they remain committed to keeping the SRO program in place. "We are confident the Board of Education will provide a safe and secure school environment for students in Barrow County with effective and efficient use of taxpayer money," another parent said. What's next During the rally, families urged elected officials to prioritize long-term solutions that reflect the county's values and maintain transparency throughout the process. The county government says the budget proposal remains under review and will be finalized in the next two weeks. Meanwhile, families with children in the district say they are left waiting — and worrying — about how the final decision will affect campus safety. SEE ALSO: Barrow County Board of Education stands firm on SRO program amid funding dispute Apalachee High School graduates remember victims during ceremony Apalachee High shooting: Judge rules on Colin Gray venue change request New scholarship honors coach killed in Apalachee HS shooting Apalachee HS hosts 'Barrow Together' event thanking community for support after shooting The Source The details in this article come from a rally on spending by Barrow County Schools. Previous FOX 5 Atlanta reports were also used.