YouthComm Magazine - Youth Communication

YCM Story of the Week

Reintroducing Myself to the World

Changing my name was the first step in acknowledging my trans boyhood.

by Marlin Xie

As the first semester of my sophomore year of high school came to an end, I stared into my bathroom mirror, and a speck of doubt began to devour every thought I had about who I was. A fog swallowed my mind, and I realized I couldn’t recognize my reflection.

Recent Stories

Transitioning With My Parent

by D.Z.

Names have been changed. When I was little, my family would call me my mother’s daughter. I would request to match outfits any time I could, and often followed my parent around the house in their much-too-big-for-me clothes that I snuck out of their closet.
A Curly Korean Complex

by Oscar Scribner

The moment I had been dreading had arrived. What was usually a mundane part of the day I’d sleep through was now a moment of palpable tension. The inquisitor was making her way down the list and was approaching… “Oscar Scr-binder?”
Listening to Love

by Anonymous

I realized I was unique when I was 4. Everyone else in pre-school had two ears, while I had a left ear and a tiny bump on the right side. I didn’t understand why my mom carefully brushed my long hair to hide the little bump.
Remembering Our Ancestors: An Interview With My Aunt Frances Cuevas

by Blonshe Katz

For my aunt Frances Cuevas, justice is the most powerful force in the world. She works full-time as the Director of Investigations and Trials for the NYC Department of Probation to maintain integrity in legal proceedings. Frances also has a highly intensive hobby that takes up most of her free time: genealogy.

Represent Magazine

Stories by Teens in Foster Care

Rejecting My Role Model

I became the best of my father, but I had to separate to protect myself.

by Anonymous

I was a daddy’s girl. In elementary school, whenever someone asked what I wanted to be when I grew up, I said, “I want to be like my dad.” He worked hard, and he was my role model. He didn’t tell me or my siblings about his childhood.

Youth-written stories in Represent give inspiration and information to teens in foster care while offering insight into those teens’ struggles.

More Recent YC Magazine Stories