James O’Brien
Andrew Jones People Feature
Headline: Making a Difference on TV
Subhead: Andrew Jones went on “The Montel Williams Show” to promote awareness about the transgender community
Pull Quote: “It still hasn’t hit me. Nothing has changed except for the fact that everyone recognizes me. It’s surreal.” Anthropology senior Andrew Jones said.

In a year when “Brokeback Mountain” and the Proposition 2 debate dominated headlines, Anthropology senior Andrew Jones became a key figure in Denton and UNT’s gay rights movement.

“The Montel Williams Show” contacted Jones to represent the transgender community, a call that caught him by surprise, according to a UNT press release. He eventually agreed to appear on the show.

“I was really hesitant…I didn’t know if he was like Jerry Springer,” Jones said.  I asked some friends and family and they said he was pretty serious, and talked with friends about the message I would send. I finally felt comfortable with it after talking about it a lot.”

Bob Miskinis, longtime friend and fellow member of Youth First Texas, explained Jones did a great job representing a group of people.

According to the Ally Program’s Web site, transgender people exhibit, “to varying degrees, the appearance, behavioral characteristics and feelings usually associated with the opposite gender. The term transgender may be used as a broad term for persons who are gender-variant.”

“A lot of people look like they don’t know what they’re talking about on this kind of show,” Miskinis said. “But I thought Andrew did great. He looked in control and smart.”  The “taped for live” experience was a jarring one. He sat in the green room for at least two hours as the show taped multiple episodes.

“There were a lot of breaks for commercials,” he said. “It felt like we were breaking every two to five minutes. By the time I got out there I didn’t really feel like talking.”  Once on stage, the show went well, Jones said.  “I got some looks, but for the most part, it was really good,” he said. “I wish people were able to ask questions though.”

Jones is a member of many groups in the community, such as UNT’s Ally Program and Transcending Gender in Denton, which he founded. He was awarded the first Gay, Lesbian, Bisexual, Transgender and Ally Scholarship from UNT in 2005.   “He’s chosen to make it for himself, but also to help other people,” Miskinis said. “He really makes people feel comfortable. He’s very motivated and brave.”  Although he has never experienced any threats of abuse in Denton, Jones said he knows people who have been threatened in the area.

“I haven’t had problems personally, but I’ve had friends get chased down the street with a baseball bat. They were a little bit more ‘obviously transgender’ than me. I think it has a lot to do with being in Texas.”  Despite these situations, Jones, Miskinis and others are trying to educate people, like Montel Williams, about their lifestyles. Williams was getting it all wrong, Jones said.

“He was saying transgender is on the spectrum of sexuality,” Jones said. “I try to tell people gender and sexuality are very different things. What you identify with, whether male, female or neither, has nothing to do with who you are attracted to.”  Life is not always easy, but at least Jones had his 15 minutes of fame.“[People recognize me] and it’s really weird - it’s really, really weird,” he said. “It still hasn’t hit me. Nothing has changed except for the fact that everyone recognizes me. It’s surreal.”