Brent Batten

brent.batten@naplesnews.com; 239-263-4776

Florida delegates to the Democratic National Convention will remember 2016 as the year they nominated Hillary Clinton.

And the year they met Monica DePaul.

Clinton's historic nomination as the first female to head a major party ticket for president overshadows another first, DePaul's presence as the first transgender delegate to represent Florida Democrats at a national convention.

DePaul began the transition from male to female in 2012, at the age of 25.

She said she decided to be a delegate to bring a perspective that was lacking. "I wanted to be part of the process. That and I saw the application and said, 'Why the hell not?'" She says there are about two dozen transgender people among the nearly 4,800 delegates at the convention.

An adjunct professor of English at the University of North Florida, DePaul said she was inspired to be politically active by the candidacy of Bernie Sanders. Now that he's out of the race, she says she'll support Clinton.

Clinton has faults, DePaul admits, but is preferable in her view to Donald Trump and Republican policy.

Those policies, for example, would force DePaul to use a men's public restroom. "Look at me, seriously," DePaul said.

She says transgender people have been mischaracterized by the media, most notably through Caitlyn Jenner's reality TV show.

"For her it's all about, 'Let's dress up these trans women,' not, "Let's get them jobs,' or anything."

Transgender individuals face unique challenges in areas such as high unemployment, workplace discrimination and being disowned by families.

Those are things the next president should be sensitive to, DePaul said.

She says she's received a warm welcome from the Democrats at the convention. "They've all been very accepting," she said.