Breanna Sinclairé, trans opera star, reflects on journey during Pride Month, Juneteenth

SAN FRANCISCO – As the Bay Area marks Juneteenth and Pride Month, Breanna Sinclairé shares her story on what it’s like to be discriminated against not only for her race, but also for her gender identity journey.

Sinclairé is a Bay Area trans opera star who recently accepted an invitation to sing the National Anthem at Oracle Park in San Francisco.

Just two years before taking the field to sing the time-honored song, Sinclairé said she, like many trans people, struggled with housing insecurity and was homeless for a time.

She knows the struggle of navigating two worlds of being on the margins while working towards having a home and getting her Masters Degree at a time when people like her are a political target.

“We are still dealing with racism, transphobia,” Sinclairé said, adding, when she sings, “I want us all to feel united. I have had to fight locked doors just to sing.”

As a singer, performing the National Anthem is tough. Tougher still, at a sporting event during a time when trans people are the target of political discussion on trans people in sports. It’s nerve-wracking.

It was the reason Sinclairé  asked that we start out the day before the ballpark at the Castro Theatre, to get in touch with the energy of what she calls her trans ancestors.

Sinclairé said, “I do feel like my trans ancestors are here. Miss Major. Janet Mock. So many great trans women of color. Black trans women paved the way for us.”

Paving the way is now Sinclairé’s inherited mission. She knows audiences watch her as they weigh their own positions on trans issues.

She said, as people grapple with record numbers of anti-trans legislation, people need to have hope, “There is hope I think we’re at a difficult time. But, there’s light. There’s only one way to go, and that’s up. We’re going to survive this.”

Reed Cowan

As KPIX 5’s 3 p.m. anchor, community-issues reporter and Executive Producer over EPIC storytelling, I hope to get to know you and earn your trust. I promise, when I tell your story, I’ll do my best to live my values about how stories can shape and change our world, always seeking to make visible what is essential to the stories that shape this beautiful part of California.