Editor’s note: The issues, solutions, and suggestions discussed below describe Kaneathan Novak’s personal experience in drum corps between 2016 and 2019. They represent many of the most common issues that transgender students experienced while on tour during that time. Since then, IN STEP and many drum corps have advocated for greater transgender awareness and worked to adopt more inclusive guidelines; as such, the experience of current marching members may be different. It is also important to note that, while the solutions and issues described below are meant to be helpful and informative to drum corps staff and marching members, they do not represent medical advice, and you should always consult a medical professional for advice about hormones, binding/tucking, and other body-related changes and issues.
By Kaneathan Novak (He/Him), music education major with studies focusing in social-emotional learning, with a cultural diversity minor (sociology). He is the LGBTQ+ subcommittee chair for DCI IN STEP and has marched five years of drum corps with Appalachian Sound, Pioneer, Atlanta CV and Jersey Surf
For many, participating in the drum corps activity is a new and exciting experience. Members get accustomed to long hours, rehearsing in small backroads towns, sleeping on gym floors, and showering in gym locker rooms. For some, the full experience might be difficult to ease into — and these struggles are magnified for any gender non-conforming person.
March 31 marks Transgender Day of Visibility, which is recognized by millions of people as a day to celebrate transgender people worldwide. As part of DCI’s commitment to diversity, equity, and inclusion, members of the IN STEP committee have put together educational resources to recognize our trans community and invited me to share my lived experience as a transgender drum corps student.
Support for the Trans Drum Corps Community
Often, students who are gender non-conforming do not yet have the support systems to ask for aid when navigating new situations in drum corps. It is very important to be aware of these concerns, as I remember my struggles with them when I was first auditioning. Today, I would love to share my knowledge in hopes to educate current transgender/non-binary marchers on ways that we adjusted to each situation you may encounter and also our drum corps community.
Preferred Name and Pronouns
When I first started marching, I had only just begun with the social transition into my name. For some transgender people, changing your name can be an affirming step during your transition process. Not everyone will change their name, but it can help some trans people in expressing their gender. During this time, I was very lucky to quickly form tight friendships with members who helped me have my identity be respected.
While drum corps has progressed through the years, standing up for your identity in a new space can be hard. For example, most corps now allow you to include a “nickname” or “preferred name,” completely separate from your legal name. If you are in a situation where you are not out yet, this is a great way for your desired name to still be honored. Through all my years of marching, misgendering and deadnaming were rarely ever done with malice. It’s important for members and allies to respect preferred names and pronouns.
Showering and Sleeping
Showering and sleeping situations were always tough to figure out when auditioning with a new corps. With sleeping areas, I was given free range to sleep wherever I wanted because these are often separated by gender. I was also able to find a comfortable solution to showering. While in the past many drum corps took a hands off approach to these topics, today, students may experience administrators who are more familiar with working with transgender students and have specific policies in place to assist with making sure sleeping and showering situations are addressed and comfortable. The most important thing to know is that, if you are uncomfortable or have a question, be sure to ask or discuss with your corps administration!
Hormone Therapy
If you happen to be on any sort of hormonal therapy while auditioning or being on tour, there are two situations in which you may find yourself. You may have a medical team that keeps track of and dispenses medication, or you may be responsible for the medication yourself. While today DCI requires medical personnel on site for all corps, when I was marching, my corps did not have any sort of medical team, so all medical issues were managed by each individual. Several of my friends were able to get prescriptions prior to the tour that would last the entire duration of the season, and they would take time during meals for their medications. If you would not like to hold on to your hormones yourself, I recommend asking the food staff to hold your medications in the food truck. I would recommend getting a hard shelled case to hold your items. This lowers the risk of breaking or losing anything. If your selected corps medical team is willing and able to hold on to your medications if you so choose, you would prepare the same way, but you would be able to leave all of your medical equipment with them.
Binding & Tucking
Another part of gender expression that may affect your drum corps experience is the implementation of physical restrictions such as binding and tucking. My personal experience involved binding, which is the physical restriction of one’s body (most commonly the chest) in order to be perceived as one’s desired gender expression. If done without proper consultation, this can become dangerous, which can be an issue within drum corps as it physically restricts the body. Similar concerns and issues may also be experienced by people who tuck.
In such high energy environments, it is not wise, at least in my experience, to restrict your chest. The few times that I bound my chest while on tour, I developed bruising between my ribs from how hard I was working to breathe. For my friends who were flatter-chested, they would use KT tape to aid in appearing flatter.
For gender non-conforming students with larger chests, I think the safest advice is to wear properly fitting sports bras. Ill-fitting sports bras will make it harder to breathe or eventually impair your posture. While wearing sports bras may cause gender dysphoria, it is the safest option for many. By the time the tour is in full-swing, your identity will be established and respected by most. After a long day of rehearsal, the other members will become so focused on learning and perfecting the show that worrying about the perception of your gender expression will not be on their radar.
Summary
The goal of sharing my experience is to make drum corps a safer, more inclusive place for transgender performers.
If you ever need a safe space to ask more specific questions about gender and drum corps, feel free to contact instepadmin@dci.org, to be connected with me or another person who can help. For corps-specific issues, reach out to your corps’ administrative team and ask about previous procedures for gender non-conforming students.
Key Terms and Definitions
Transgender: An umbrella term for people whose gender identity and/or expression is different from cultural expectations based on the sex they were assigned at birth. Being transgender does not imply any specific sexual orientation. Therefore, transgender people may identify as straight, gay, lesbian, bisexual, etc. (hrc.org)
Gender Non-conforming: A broad term referring to people who do not behave in a way that conforms to the traditional expectations of their gender, or whose gender expression does not fit neatly into a category. While many also identify as transgender, not all gender non-conforming people do. (hrc.org)
Non-binary: An adjective describing a person who does not identify exclusively as a man or a woman. (hrc.org)
Pronouns: Pronouns are connected to gender expression which are external manifestations of gender, expressed through a person's name, pronouns, clothing, haircut, behavior, voice, and/or body characteristics. Ally Tip: If you accidently use the wrong pronoun, apologize quickly and sincerely, then move forward.
Educational Resources
To read more about the importance of this day and more, check out the featured links below:
- GLSEN: Transgender Day of Visibility Educator Resources
- GLSEN: Know Your Pronouns Resource for Educators
- USA TODAY: The history behind International Transgender Day of Visibility
- UNFE: Celebrate Trans Visibility, How to be an ally
