Chicago scientist Jey McCreight is marking DNA Day on April 25 by testing a simple, provocative question: What happens if trans people become “too powerful” all at once?
It’s not a serious hypothesis. But the experiment—dubbed a “transquake”—is very real.
The transquake is part of a worldwide day of action with an in-person event in Chicago that doubles as the launch of Beyond X&Y, a new educational advocacy campaign McCreight created to counter the growing wave of anti-trans misinformation—often cloaked in the language of science, but not rooted in truth.
As lawmakers and public figures increasingly invoke “biology” to restrict trans rights, McCreight says scientists have a responsibility to push back. Their transquake experiment—a test of the baseless claims that trans people are a threat to society—is part of that effort.
“They’re saying trans people are this horrible, scary, evil, powerful force that’s destroying the world,” McCreight said. “Well, if they think we’re so powerful, that’s a testable hypothesis.”
The transquake’s namesake is a nod to the trend of viral “boobquake” rallies McCreight inadvertently started in 2010 after writing a satirical blog post inviting women to join them in showing a considerable amount of cleavage on a specific date to test an Iranian cleric’s claim that immodestly dressed women were causing earthquakes. At the time, McCreight was a student studying biology at Purdue University.
McCreight’s transquake experiment involves “maximizing the amount of transness in the world within a 24-hour period” to see what consequences it may bring.
In Chicago, people can participate in the transquake by gathering at the official Transquake variety hour from 5-6:30 p.m. on April 25 at the Lincoln Lodge, 2040 N. Milwaukee Ave.
The science-themed show will feature standup and drag performances from a trans and queer cast, as well as a cheeky talk and participatory “experiment” led by McCreight. Tickets cost $18.48.
But people are encouraged to participate in the transquake experiment from across the world, by finding ways of expressing queer joy in their everyday lives or virtually on social media using the #transquake and tagging @beyondxandy.
“Will we trigger an earthquake under Mar a Lago? Will lightning strike a certain moldy castle in Scotland? Or will I myself be struck with lightning?” McCreight said of the satirical experiment. “Let’s test whether we are actually that powerful.”
McCreight’s initiative draws on both their scientific expertise and lived experience as a transgender person.
A human geneticist in training, McCreight earned a Ph.D. from the University of Washington and went on to lead science communication efforts at the biotech company 23andMe, where they helped translate complex genetic research for public audiences and pushed for inclusive approaches to sex and gender in data collection.
McCreight said their interests in science—including the biological diversity of sex—stemmed in part from a desire to better understand their own gender identity. They grew up in Northwest Indiana with little representation, and often turned to science to make sense of their internal feelings around gender.
“I remember as a 16-year-old looking at my genetics books and learning about intersex variations, realizing I felt like a boy and that sex isn’t as simple as people say,” McCreight said.
But McCreight said they’ve also seen how anti-trans voices co-opt the language of science to justify attacks on transgender people—often by promoting oversimplified or inaccurate claims, such as the idea that biological sex is strictly binary.
McCreight said scientists have a responsibility to push back on that misinformation by using their expertise to defend transgender people and correct the record with facts.
“These are fringe, right-wing activists trying to act like they represent science, and scientists have a duty to push back on ideas that are unscientific and being used to harm people,” McCreight said.
The transquake experiment is McCreight’s way of pushing back—using humor, education and community to puncture fear-based narratives about transgender people. It’s also the beginning of what McCreight hopes will grow into a full-fledged Beyond X&Y media campaign with podcasts, videos, articles, events and more.
“I want to do fun things for the trans community in a geeky, Bill Nye the Science Guy way—something that can move the needle a little bit toward more knowledge and empathy,” McCreight said.