An Interview With Paul

This interview was conducted with Paul, a Marginal Leadership Programme participant, at the beginning of 2020. By this point, Paul had become an intrinsic part of Comics Youth – Marginal’s sibling organisation – and was an active contributor and leading creative force in developing content for several zines. As a young, marginalised activist with a unique vision and a rare talent, we’re incredibly excited to nurture his voice and to publish his work. 

This is his story in becoming an important part of Marginal. 

Paul, age [insert age]

How did you first discover or hear about Comics Youth?

I was in YPAS going to the action youth group which is for trans young people. I think it might have been only a couple of months after I started going there that Comics Youth popped in. I’m going to say that the first thing we spoke about was Pokémon and then ever since then I was like These guys are cool! I’m gonna hang out with them. And that’s how it started. 

They brought you into the fold?

Yeah! They sat me down with some felt tip pens and some paper and ever since then it’s been a rowdy time! Lots of doodling! It’s been good. 

That’s boss! Was it a specific session that you came to or was it a random just popping in to use the space type thing?
It must have been close to when Comics Youth had just started, maybe 2017? When it was based in Kirbky. So I was one of the early crew. I was in there and hanging out. I think before then we didn’t even have a specific goal like The Gaily Mail. Or at least the young people there didn’t know that was going to be a thing. We were just kind of thinking, Oh, they might be here for a few sessions. How cool’s this? We’re gonna draw little comics! But it spiralled into something that’s become very important to me. 

With The Gaily Mail, we basically had the idea of making a youth & LGBT positive version of a newspaper with a kind of joke on the name of a mainstream newspaper that’s very non-LGBT friendly. And it turned into a fun little book!

So, would you say that The Gaily Mail was one of the first things that made you feel like a part of Comics Youth and the Marginal Programme?

I think in my first Comics Youth session I’d made a small zine called Paul – it was a very creative name! I’d only recently come out when I started attending the sessions - I’d been out for about four or five months. So, the zine was just about my experience at that time of being very new to being in transition and being very new to social transition. And the reaction I got from that just felt really nice to me. 

All throughout my life I’ve kind of been like, “Ooh, I don’t want to show anyone my art! I don’t do good art!” but [Comics Youth] reacted so pleasantly and printed copies of it and were showing me, like, “Hey look! We printed copies of the thing you’ve drawn!” And I was kind of like, Okay! That’s weird (laughs). I’m not very good at accepting compliments but Comics Youth managed to reel me in and make my brain be like, Wow, people are reading your thing and are not saying it’s terrible?!

I don’t think any artist takes compliments well! Away from Comics Youth, what sorts of things do you enjoy doing in your everyday life?

I think I’d describe myself as a very floaty person. I don’t really do anything too serious. Like, I spend a lot of my time looking at animals on Instagram – from dogs to hedgehogs – some good animals! But then I do also do kind of more serious things. I like to be involved in activism. Things related to Extinction Rebellion.

In terms of activism what would you say are your favourite areas? Is it mostly environmental stuff?

I enjoy environmental stuff but I think I’d like to get more involved in veganism and animal rights activism. Because that’s something that I think is a really big – it’s something that’s close to me and close to my heart and to my ethics as a person.  

Is there anything you dislike or find challenging about everyday life?

I think I find everything about life challenging. Maybe ask What’s not challenging about life? (laughs). I think the world is not built for people who aren’t neurotypical, who aren’t straight, people who aren’t cisgender. 

It’s very much just built for a world of people who, frankly, are probably in the actual minority. Cis, straight, able-bodied people who don’t have any mental health issues. That’s become the minority now but it’s still what the world fits around and is what the world is most comfortable with for some reason. So, if you’re not in one of those groups or belong to one of those groups, things are still uncomfortable for you. 

Things are changing, which is amazing. But a lot of things aren’t built for people like me or my friends. And it’s uncomfortable to see them dealing with so many struggles and they really don’t deserve it. I don’t like that. That’s my key dislike. 

Would you say that the Marginal Programme and Comics Youth helps you to deal with that in some way?

That’s a definite. Not only have I met people who I only could have dreamed of meeting – like, oh my god, they’re so cool, I didn’t even know people like that existed! – it’s also that these people who are cool and that I never would have dreamed to even exist, they kind of also wanna talk to me too?! And also have similar issues to me and have dealt with similar struggles in their own life. And it’s crazy to meet people who have dealt with the same issues as you and who can support you through that. 

Comics Youth and the Marginal Programme have definitely given a lot of young people who the world isn’t built for - who have been told to be quiet, or who have been pushed into the shadows - a platform to voice things on a level they’re comfortable with. And that’s crazy, cos that’s really what’s needed. People who are in those places who are struggling with just living their everyday life really need to be able to voice what could make things better for them or what people around them could do to make things cosier in their life. 

And to dismantle the system?

Yeeeaah and dismantle the system! That’s the secret to it all!

This interview has been edited for clarity.