I started out in the ballroom scene when I was fourteen years old.

Mj Rodriguez

Categorized in : Out Old Years Scene

I just want to be a light of hope for anyone who might be in the dark.

light hope dark want

It was me that was holding myself back because I felt like I had to fit into this mold of what people want to see.

back myself me people

There's a lot of hope and comfort and nurturing in the ballroom scene.

nurturing scene hope comfort

I do like to think of myself as a star: because there's room for many stars up in the sky - and we all have the chance to shine bright.

shine myself stars sky

Home is like my detox: it's what keeps me grounded.

like me grounded home

A lot of people have forgotten the severity of this disease, of HIV. So I think it's important that we just talk about things like this: how we can prevent it, how we can make sure that people are safe, how they can move forward, too, if they do have HIV.

hiv think important people

For people who have been ostracized, who have been all the way at the bottom, there's only one way that we can go - and that's up.

only go people way

Throughout my life, my mom, my dad, my grandmother - these were people who made sure that I had the right people around me uplifting me.

my-life me life people

Me, as a woman of the trans experience, I'm not able to have children biologically. And I have always been someone who was very, very... I wanted to have a traditional family, as a young kid. The wife and the kids and, you know... as I grew older, times changed, and my mindset changed.

me family wife children

I'm obviously fighting for my community simply because I'm trans, and I have to do that, and I do it because that's my existence. I wake up in the morning, and that is my activism.

wake-up community fighting morning

Being able to change the world and change hearts and minds - it's uplifting.

change-the-world being change world

I just want to instill love into everyone's hearts. I know that sounds cheesy, but it's true.

true know want love

Sometimes I wake up, and I wear jeans; sometimes I want to wear khakis or full-on overalls.

wear wake-up want sometimes

When I was in high school, I was doing a fashion show, and my House Father would host fashion shows at the school. He was great at it. He saw me and said, 'That's my daughter.' The rest was history! We went to New York City to rehearse and go to balls, and I was in the ballroom scene until I was 17 years old.

me daughter father history

My mom is my biggest cheerleader.

biggest cheerleader mom

You can't force anyone to understand anything that they don't want to understand.

understand you force want

Every day, I walk the streets with my head held high, but deep down inside, sometimes I'm like, 'I just hope I can get through the day.'

walk day hope sometimes

I had always known I was female, since I was 7 years old.

had old always years

'Rent' was one of the main defining moments, and it was like the precipice of my transition.

rent like transition moments

I always believe that the experiences that you go through are what make you stronger and what help you push forward through life.

you stronger life believe