Ashlee Marie Preston is an American media personality, journalist and activist, the first trans woman to become editor-in-chief of a national publication, Wear Your Voice Magazine, and the first openly trans person to run for state office in California. Originally from Kentucky, she moved to Los Angeles and began transitioning at age 19. She first rose to public attention after publicly confronting Caitlyn Jenner over her support for the Trump administration. She contributed her writing to a number of publications, and has been recognized for her activism by various media organizations and companies. Preston is active in the Los Angeles trans community, and is a member of multiple community organizations, including serving as the chair of communications and media sponsorship with group Los Angeles Pride, and as a community outreach member with the Human Rights Campaign. She also serves as a campaign surrogate for Elizabeth Warren's 2020 presidential campaign. In October 2019 previous tweets by Preston, described as racist and homophobic, resurfaced. She apologized and said the tweets were made while under the influence of drugs.
Personal life
Preston, originally from Louisville, Kentucky, left her home town at age 19, moving to Los Angeles where she transitioned, and experienced a period of homelessness and sex work. She began doing drugs and was sexually assaulted. Speaking to Vice, "the drugs were a social lubricant that numbed my conscious to the demoralizing things that were done to me out of survival. It all went hand in hand."
Career
Preston rose to public prominence after confronting Caitlyn Jenner during an event at the Trans Chorus of L.A. in 2017. A video of the event, which included Preston calling Jenner a "fucking fraud" over her support of US presidentDonald Trump, went viral online. Preston later resigned from the Trans Chorus citing concerns over the groups mission "on paper" versus their "active mission". In a subsequent interview with TMZ, she expressed concern about the alignment of those such as Jenner along with Harvey Levin, who she saw as supporting a political agenda which was antagonistic of the LGBTQ community. As she told The Huffington Post, "I’m not saying you can’t be an LGBTQ+ identified Republican; I’m saying that you don’t get to access safe spaces that are designated for those of us your political efforts have harmed." In 2017 Preston was appointed as the first transgender editor of the feminist publication Wear Your Voice. She is also highly involved in the local trans community in Los Angeles, and has served with the Transgender Service Provider Network of Los Angeles, as chair of communications and media sponsorship with group L.A. Pride, and as a community outreach member with the Human Rights Campaign. She is the host of the podcast REVRY Studio’s SHOOK with Ashlee Marie Preston, which covers topics related to discrimination, and she has contributed her writing to outlets such as Teen Vogue and Vice. Preston appeared on The Root's list of 100 most influential African-Americans in 2017. Preston has advocated for the online hashtag #ThriveOver35, highlighting the average life expectancy of black trans women in the US. She popularized the campaign by commissioning a cake for her 34th birthday bearing the images of 77 black transgender women who were murdered before reaching age 35. She also led a movement to boycott the radio showThe Breakfast Club, after host Charlamagne tha God "appeared to goad comedian Lil Duval into making statements about killing trans women". She, along with Patrisse Cullors of the Black Lives Matter movement went on to disrupt an event featuring Charlamagne tha God at Politicon in protest.
Politics
Preston announced in 2018 she would run for election in California's 54th State Assembly district, a seat vacated by the retirement of Sebastian Ridley-Thomas, making her the first openly trans statewide candidate in the history of California. She later withdrew from the race, but did not provide immediate specifics behind her decision to drop out. In an interview with The Daily Beast, she stated she "had insufficient time to mount the type of campaign needed for an insurgent, unconventional candidacy such as hers." For the 2020 election, she has endorsed Elizabeth Warren to become the Democratic nominee for President of the United States. In October 2019 whilst feuding with supporters of 2020 presidential candidateBernie Sanders over his absence from two LGBTQ forums, past tweets made by Preston resurfaced, described as racist and homophobic in content. Preston deleted several of the tweets and issued an apology, blaming her drug addiction at the time of the tweets.
