Professionals for Trans Rights 2023

Alejandra Caraballo
Trans Activist Award

Alejandra Caraballo (she/her) is a Clinical Instructor at Harvard Law School’s Cyberlaw Clinic where she focuses on the intersection of gender and technology. Prior to joining the clinic, Alejandra was a staff attorney at the Transgender Legal Defense and Education Fund and a Staff Attorney at the LGBTQ Law Project at New York Legal Assistance Group. In her spare time, she can be found playing guitar, building computers, creating electronic music, and brewing beer.

Ashton Mota
Trans Excellence Award

Ashton Mota (he/him/el) is a proud Black, Dominican-American student and transgender advocate from Lowell, MA. He is a bright, comical, compassionate eighteen-year-old who believes that spending time with family and friends brings out the very best in himself. Ashton’s public advocacy began in 2018 at the age of 14, when he became one of the faces of the “Yes on 3” campaign to uphold gender identity protections in MA. In 2021, he partnered with He now travels the country speaking and advocating for young trans and nonbinary people. Ashton’s hard work resulted in the opportunity to introduce President Biden in June 2021 at the White House’s Pride Month celebration.

Kimm Topping
In Service Award

Kimm Topping (they/them) values LGBTQ+ youth leadership, joy, and education. They’ve worked with grassroots organizations in Boston for over 10 years, including The Network / La Red, Trans Resistance, Building Audacity, and currently as the Safe Schools Program for LGBTQ Students Manager with the MA Commission on LGBTQ Youth and DESE. Kimm is the author of Generation Queer, the first collection of illustrated biographies about queer and trans youth activists forthcoming in 2023 from Tu Books / Lee & Low Books.

Chanel the Angel

Chanel the Angel (she/her) is a talented drag performer based in Boston, known for her captivating stage presence and dynamic performances. She has a rich and diverse background in the arts, having performed in musical and theater productions. Chanel has also modeled for numerous campaigns, including BAGLY’s “Be Audacious” campaign and Arnold Productions’ “Give Them Their Flowers” campaign, both of which highlight the importance of trans talent and beauty.

In addition to her work in the arts, Chanel has had the privilege of opening for the Boston Red Sox and performing in front of a stage of thousands at Boston’s biggest pride event Gay Bash’d.

If you’re looking to catch Chanel live, you can find her every Friday at Jacques Carbaret or at her monthly brunch at Ghost Pepper. To stay updated on her latest events and shows, be sure to check out her Instagram page @chaneltheeangel.

Johnny Blazes

Johnny Blazes (they/them) is a movement an social-emotional educator and performer based in the Boston, MA area. Their performances push the boundaries of genre and gender, highbrow and lowbrow, tradition and subversion. Their mission as an educator is to share themself authentically with students, teaching from a foundation of love and humility, while constantly striving to listen and learn as much as teach.

photo credit: Adrienne Mathiowetz

DJ Ushka

Thanushka (Thanu) Yakupitiyage (she/her) is a Sri Lankan-born, Thailand-raised activist, cultural organizer, and DJ under the artist moniker “Ushka.” She deejays from the perspective of a dancer, blending a wide range of club music from soca to dancehall, hip hop to south asian rhythms, baltimore/jersey club to baile funk, vogue cuts to kuduro, azonto to afrobeat and more. When she isn’t crafting dance floor spaces, Ushka is a political and cultural organizer.