Background on Connie Jean Diaries
Although little is known about Connie Jean beyond her first name, and even that is uncertain, portions of her life can be pieced together. A gender non-conforming woman assigned male at birth, Connie Jean lived in Lansdowne, Pa., a small suburban city due west of Philadelphia, during the late 1970s and 1980s. During this time, she became involved with another transgender woman, Dick, who ultimately left her wife and children to move in together. Dick held a steady job throughout their relationship, while Connie Jean relied on "mother" for financial support, at least on occasion.
Connie Jean began venturing in public dressed as a woman in 1976, carefully recording where she went and whom she encountered. Already in her late 30s or early 40s, both she and Dick considered gender reassignment surgery, with Connie Jean writing, "as I sit in the straight chair and write this, I am a woman."
