T4T: A Trans for Trans Syllabus

5 December 2026

T4T, or trans for trans as it stands for, began its life in the early 2000s within the now defunct Craigslist personal ads section to delineate trans people seeking other trans people for hookups or dating (Awkward-Rich & Malatino, 2022, pg.2). However, while still in common usage on dating and hookups platforms in its originating context it has also expanded to encompass a diverse range of connections and practices between trans people. This includes erotic relations but also intercommunity trans solidarity, trans separatist spaces, networks and connections, and practices and communities of mutual aid, political organizing and support. In this sense t4t has in certain ways transcended past dating or sexual preference and into an active practice of relation and solidarity between trans people, it is here we find the radical possibilities for what t4t can be and do for trans scholars, activists and individuals. For the purpose of this syllabus these possibilities include the celebration of trans desire as a site of identity formation and exploration, reprieve from the pressure to bypass negative emotions, and a praxis of trans for trans care. However, as Awkward-Rich and Malatino’s article “meanwhile, t4t” reminds us it is vital to not allow the utopian idea of t4t to eclipse intersections of race and class and thus reinforce white racial dominance (Awkward-Rich, Malatino, 2022, pg.3-4). As in the search for an uncomplicated t4t “we” it is not uncommon for the manifestations of intercommunity racism to be dismissed in service of transgender unity, thus unintentionally upholding white supremacy (Awkward-Rich, Malatino, 2022, pg.3-4). Overall, t4t as not just an identity label but a praxis of radical intercommunity care is valuable for scholars as it offers the potential for the imagining of trans possibilities and futures, and for activists as it offers a framework for mutual aid, advocacy and solidarity - by trans people, for trans people.

In a political climate in which trans sexualities, and in particular the experience of sexual joy stemming from being trans is labelled taboo, the recognition and exploration of sexual desire between and stemming from trans people can be a site of radical rebellion. A common transphobic trope levied against trans people is the idea of the “trans seducer” luring the vulnerable youth into leaving behind the ideals of binary or fixed genders as determined by sex. The prevalence of this particular trope in anti-trans movements has made it taboo to discuss the intersections of desire and trans identity even within trans circles, academic and otherwise, for fear of giving fodder to the right. Andrea Chu explores the idea of sexual desire being entangled with formation of one's trans identity in her essay “On Liking Women” saying, “the truth is, I have never been able to differentiate liking women from wanting to be like them. For years, the former desire held the latter in its mouth, like a capsule too dangerous to swallow” (Chu, 2018). In their article Adair and Aizura reckon with this seducer trope by in a sense reclaiming it and embracing the idea that sexual desire for another trans person can beget identity formation (Adair & Aizura, 2022, pg.45). It is in this way that T4T opens up the possibilities for discussing and exploring the lived experiences of trans people and their desires, and how these desires are not only a part of their trans journey but vital motivators to embark on the journey in the first place.

T4t intimacies can also offer support, recognition, and a means of survival for those living with the difficult feelings stemming from living with trans experience. These feelings which larger cisnormative society may reject for failing to live up to the “it gets better” narrative or the increasingly corporatized notion of “pride.” Cameron Awkward-Rich introduces the concept of trans maladjustment which refers to specific bad feelings or habits that show up commonly in relation to trans experiences but are not reducible to an outcome of oppression (Awkward-Rich, 2022, pg.6). He goes to argue for embracing and sitting with trans maladjustment and the “bad” feelings that accompany it as valid sources of trans thought, as the more commonly embraced feelings I mentioned above (Awkward-Rich, 2022, pg.6). In mainstream trans discourse there is often a casting of the time before transition as a period before transition as one of dullness and depression, and the period after as one of joy, actualization, and fulfillment. In his essay “Future Fatigue” author Hil Malatino explores this idea and in particular how it relates to those who struggle to access transition or those in the process of transition, those living in the interim (Malatino, 2022). Malatino argues for t4t love as a praxis with which to live through the bad feelings, or the trans maladjustment perhaps, experienced in the interim (Malatino, 2022). In this way T4T offers a space in which those living in the interim with all its uncomfortabilities and anxieties may find the resources to as Heather Love puts it “living with the injury- not fixing it” (Love, 2007 p.4).

One of the primary interactions uptaken by t4t past a dating or sexual preference is that of a praxis of intercommunity care between trans people, in this way t4t transforms from a label into a practice. This practice shows up in many different ways spanning from the simple acts between two individuals such as the sharing of hormones or the accompanying a friend to a surgical appointment, to the formation of vast networks of mutual aid. In particular in trans circles these systems of care and aid predicated on community solidarity are vitally important due to the ways trans people are so often shut out of normative centers of care, due to familial estrangement or systemized oppression (Malatino, 2020, pg.2). Further, these acts of intercommunity care have historical significance and stretch back beyond the emergence of the t4t label with examples such as Sylvia Rivera and Marsha P. Johnson’s STAR house which provided vital resources for transgender youth (Hall, 2023). This recontextualizing of t4t as an active practice invites the possibility for more expansive forms of community solidarity that is able to touch those beyond who you may experience romantic or sexual love towards. Torrey Peters (2016) science-fiction novella “Infect Your Friends and Loved Ones” explores t4t care networks post apocalypse, and offers this quote as a summation of the love praxis behind them:

References

Adair, C., & Aizura, A. (2022). “The Transgender Craze Seducing Our [Sons]”; or, All the Trans Guys Are Just Dating Each Other. (pp. 44–64). TSQ 1; 9 (1):

Awkward-Rich, C. (2022). Introduction: On Staying With The Terrible We. The Terrible We: Thinking with Trans Maladjustment (pp. 1-29). Duke University Press. https://doi.org/10.1215/9781478023302-001

Awkward-Rich, C., & Malatino, H. (2022). Meanwhile, T4T. TSQ: Transgender Studies Quarterly, 9(1), 1–8. https://doi.org/10.1215/23289252-9475467

Chu, A.L. (2018). On Liking Women. n+1. https://www.nplusonemag.com/issue-30/essays/on-liking-women/

Love, H. (2007). Introduction. In Feeling Backward: Loss and the Politics of Queer History (pp. 1–30). Harvard University Press. https://doi.org/10.2307/j.ctvjghxr0.3

Malatino, H. (2020). Surviving Trans Antagonism. In Trans Care (pp. 1–18). University of Minnesota Press. https://doi.org/10.5749/j.ctv17mrv14.3

Peters, T. (2016). Infect Your Friends and Loved Ones. (pp. 1-75) CreateSpace Independent Publishing.

Annotated Bibliography

Awkward-Rich, C., & Malatino, H. (2022). Meanwhile, T4T. TSQ: Transgender Studies Quarterly, 9(1), 1–8. https://doi.org/10.1215/23289252-9475467

In their article which serves as the opener for the t4t issue of Trans Studies Quarterly Cameron Awkward-Rich and Hill Maltino give an overview of contemporary usage of the term t4t and all that it has come to encompass, as well as its possibilities and limits. By their own description they approach t4t as a “question and problem” posing and then attempting to answer such questions as has t4t reinforced a trans and cis binary? Has t4t and its idealization had the effect of glossing over intersectional issues, more specifically race? It’s this last question which prompted inclusion in this syllabus as it lends an intersectional lens to discourse surrounding t4t and invites us to consider its limits, and the ways in which striving towards a t4t utopia can make some members of our community more vulnerable. Awkward-Rich and Malatino highlight this point through analysis of a scene in Leslie Feinberg’s famed novel Stone Butch Blues in which the protagonist Jess responds to a fight between two butches, sparked by racist comments from one them by calling for t4t solidarity, saying “we need to stick together.” Through this example we are shown directly the ways in which striving for a united, t4t, “we” can erase the complex intersections that exist among us.

Adair, C., & Aizura, A. (2022). “The Transgender Craze Seducing Our [Sons]”; or, All the Trans Guys Are Just Dating Each Other. (pp. 44–64). TSQ 1; 9 (1): https://doi.org/10.1215/23289252-9475509

Authors Adair and Aizura utilize the antitrans narrative which holds that transness, and in particular trans masculinity, is a social contagion that is influencing young girls to become young boys. Particularly, they invoke the version of this narrative which casts this process as a kind of seduction and therefore casts trans masculine people in the role of the seducer, turning it into a positive by embracing the idea that desire can beget identity formation. Put more simply they put forth the notion that we might take up the conception that sexual desire for trans people might prompt one to come into their own trans identity, by realizing the object of their erotic desire might be aspirational to who they want to become. This particular concept is invaluable when thinking through the radical potential of t4t in its erotic iteration as it displays the ways in which we can embrace trans desire in the face of stigma. It also challenges the idea that there are certain topics we must avoid addressing in trans discourse for fear of adding legitimacy to antitrans narratives. Adair and Aizura’s embracing of the concept of t4t desire as a vehicle for trans contagion challenges mainstream trans discourse to lean into what is considered taboo.

Malatino, H. (2019). Future Fatigue: Trans Intimacies and Trans Presents (or How to Survive the Interregnum). (pp. 635–658) TSQ 1; 6 (4). https://doi.org/10.1215/23289252-7771796

Hil Malatino highlights how mainstream narratives of transition and transness as a whole position life preceding medical transition as devoid and bleak in contrast to life post-transition as full of promises of harmony and ease. Through this he explores how this can create anxiety in those living in the interim, that is the time between pre and post transition life, as well as the feeling that one is living in lag. In particular he uses the concept of cruel optimism, conceptualized by scholar Lauren Berlant, to examine this phenomenon and highlight how the promise of post-transition bliss can actually create the environment for this anxiety to exist. In order to highlight this praxis of t4t love in the interim Malatino examines a number of trans centered works of dystopian fiction and uses them to highlight the ways in which this practice of t4t love plays out under difficult circumstances. This perspective is invaluable to academic and wider trans discourse, as it encourages us to view t4t as a praxis of love and care that can be practiced in the present, one that can exist alongside bad feelings, and these feelings when sat with can give way to more diverse and richer trans thought.

Peters, T. (2016). Infect Your Friends and Loved Ones. (pp. 1-75) CreateSpace Independent Publishing.

Torrey Peters 2016 short speculative fiction novella explores a post-apocalyptic world in which humanity at large has been infected by a virus that prevents the body from producing its own hormones, thereby forcing the population to fight for access to exogenous hormones. The origin of this virus being a group of trans women headed by the charismatic Lexi motivated by bitterness from a recent breakup and resentment for the world which has treated herself and her trans friends poorly. The breakup at the core of the story is indeed a t4t relationship between two trans women, but the t4t themes of the story expand beyond here to encompass the networks of trans separatist groups that evolve after the beginning of the outbreak. It is in this way that Peter's narrative encompasses a wide range of contexts encapsulated under the umbrella of t4t from the sexual and romantic, to t4t as a greater practice of love and solidarity. In fact, throughout the text t4t is spoken of by name and constantly defined and redefined across time and contexts, reflecting the way its meaning is often renegotiated in the lived experiences of trans people. With one character saying of it, “It’s kind of a joke. Trans girls fucking trans girls. But really, it’s an ethos. Trans girls loving trans girls, above all else.” The post apocalyptic setting of the novella helps us think through the necessity of t4t networks in impossible scenarios, and helps us imagine radically supportive t4t futures even in the face of extreme adversity.

Hall, J. (2023). “T4T” Has Become a Deeply Vital Term to Trans People. Here’s Why. The Nation. https://www.thenation.com/article/society/t4t-trans-community-solidarity/

Jake Hall’s article provides an overview of various manifestations of t4t discourse, from its origins on craigslist, to its recent emergence as a political ethos and practice of trans solidarity. Tracing specific practices unique to t4t circles of care, such as celebrating transition anniversaries and the sharing of hormones, and the creation and maintenance of t4t separatist spaces. In particular the article pays specific attention to the ways in which the political ethos of t4t stretches back in time, defining solidarity and mutual aid projects of the past. It specifically highlights trans solidarity movements of the past such as Sylvia Rivera and Marsha P. Johnson’s STAR house, and communities of trans and gender non-conforming people in First and Second World War internment camps as highlighted in an interview with Kit Heyam in the article. It is vital to remember, specifically in our current political era in which trans people's legislative rights and existential future are under threat that trans-for-trans circles of care and mutual aid have always been central to the survival of the community as a greater whole.

Part Three: Towards a T4T Creative Methodology. (2024). Saskatchewan Arts Alliance. Retrieved November 29 2025, from https://www.saskartsalliance.ca/news/part-three-towards-a-t4t-creative-methodology/

Detailed in this article is the work of transgender artist Jaye Kovach who lives and works across the province of Saskatchewan, with her works largely revolving around various elements of the trans experience. In particular she discusses t4t as a creative methodology more specifically in the intentional decentering of cisness in service of the creation of art by trans people specifically for trans people. She poses the question of what it means to challenge the cisgender gaze within an artistic practice? Her answer to this question is an art installation and performance piece called “I Don’t Want to See or Be Seen by Cis People,” which is divided into two parts the first of which being a party specifically for trans and gender non-conforming people in which they are given the prompt “what would you do in the absence of the cisgender gaze.” This question and t4t creative methodology which gave birth to it are important to consider as they are central to many iterations of the t4t experience. Further, in the absence of abundant representations of t4t relationships it is important to center a creative process as in general participating in any manifestation of t4t is an experience of creating something new.