The Gender Spectrum Collection
Overview
The Gender Spectrum Collection is a collection of photos under a CC-BY-NC-ND license that provides a range of photos imaging trans and non-binary personhood. These fall under 6 sub-headings:
- Lifestyle
- Relationships
- Technology
- Work
- Health
- Outdoors
Collection
You can access the collection here.
Please note:
When you click on a photo, it will show you a full-size version of the photo, as well as the alternative text, and give you the option to download.
The alternative text may contain the individuals’ gender identification (i.e., “a non-binary trans man”). This is for us as curators/editors not to make assumptions about the individuals in the photos. The guidelines ask that we only include this information in the content/alt text if it is relevant to the content/story we are creating.
Quick Reference Guidelines
Click here to view their guidelines for image use.
License:
Creative Commons Attribution – Non-Commercial – No Derivatives 4.0 International (CC BY-NC-ND 4.0)
Attribution:
Photo courtesy of The Gender Spectrum Collection licensed under CC BY-NC-ND 4.0
Additional Notes:
- “…it is vital for anyone using this resource to make appropriate contextual decisions. When attaching a photo to an article, think critically about how the accompanying headline could reflect on the trans community. Understanding the stereotypes and tropes that have accompanied transgender media representation—such as trans subjects being cast only as sex workers, portrayed solely in states of apparent victimhood or crisis, and being characterized as deceptive and mentally unstable—can help you to avoid them. If your usage of one of these photos could feed into a stereotype or negative stigma, you probably shouldn’t use it. Challenge your own implicit biases and assumptions about about how gender identity and gender expression correlate with other aspects of identity such as sex assigned at birth, race, age, sexuality, and class.” (Vice, 2021) [1]
- “In this library, we included each model’s gender identification in the caption of each photo, in order to help editors avoid making assumptions when choosing images. In editorial contexts, however, gender identity should not be used in a caption or article unless it is relevant to the story.” (Vice, 2021) [2]
- “As you engage with these images, don’t make these editorial decisions alone. Talk with your teams, work with LGBTQ colleagues who have offered to help, and reach out to third-party organizations like GLAAD, the National Lesbian and Gay Journalist’s Association, and The Trans Journalists Association to educate yourself and your staff about best practices around media representation of trans and non-binary people.” (Vice, 2021)[3]
- Contact them at: Meredith.Balkus@vice.com
- Vice Media. (2021). Guidelines. The gender spectrum collection. https://genderspectrum.vice.com/guidelines ↵
- Vice Media. (2021). Guidelines. The gender spectrum collection. https://genderspectrum.vice.com/guidelines ↵
- Vice Media. (2021). Guidelines. The gender spectrum collection. https://genderspectrum.vice.com/guidelines ↵
