Bazant, Micah. TimTum- A Trans Jew Zine. Digital Transgender Archive, 1999.

TimTum is a zine about what it means to be Jewish and queer, to celebrate those two things within oneself without having to suppress or hide one or the other. It is a celebration of Jewish love and beauty in all the forms it takes, both in one’s own life and throughout history. This zine is about survival and finding hope within that.

At times, TimTum was painful to read. The experience of being both Jewish and queer (both separately and together) can be difficult to unpack and takes tenderness and care. Bazant highlights the similarities between the two, “being in a place, but not fully being there—a sense of displacement, millennia of wandering, of watching your back.” Both experiences are torn between to things: wanting to blend in and having pride in your identity, feeling as though you are in a constant sate of wandering while also being deeply rooted in the past. The two inform and enrich each other.

While this zine is not about the experience of being a Jewish woman, it is about what it is to be part of a marginalized community on top of being Jewish. It is about being Jewish in a body that your ancestors would not understand. This zine highlights the love and warmth and healing that can come from accepting one’s Jewish roots and how that warmth can be applied to current wounds being inflicted by modern day institutions. This zine is a perfect example of how it feels to be young and Jewish finding your place in the world in a country that seeks to silence you.

Link to PDF of zine: http://www.qzap.org/v5/gallery/main.php?g2_view=core.DownloadItem&g2_itemId=1552