Image credit: Myco Manchester CIC

Throughout history mushrooms have often been viewed as mysterious or even monstorous things. They've been feared and rejected through their ability to defy categorisation. They've sparked debate and confusion around their sexual and reproductive capacities. To which we, as trans people, say "same". 

In this facilitated conversation between trans historian Kit Heyam and queer mycologist Susy, aka Queer as Funghi, we want to explore how, why and if we can describe mushrooms as trans beings, touching on themes of queer ecology, trans kinship and symbiosis.

This event is a part of Myco’s trans event series funded by Manchester Pride. This event is organised primarily by & for trans people, but cis people are welcome to join, being mindful of who this event is for.

Myco is a trans workers' co-operative and community mushroom farm based in Fallowfield, Manchester. Alongside growing mushrooms and teaching other people how to grow mushrooms, we run events connecting people to the world of nature and fungi, placing an emphasis on the approach that mycology is for everybody. 

Susy (they/them) runs the project Queer as Funghi, bringing together their work as a queer youth worker, a grower and an amateur mycologist to run mushroom walks for LGBTIQ+ people. They are also the founder of the decomposition focused youth project Young Rotters.

Kit (they/he) is a historian and trans awareness trainer. They are the author of Before We Were Trans: A New History of Gend (Basic Books UK/Seal Press, 2022), a book which calls for a new, expansive approach to trans history rooted in anti-racism and an ethics of care.