Denise Norris
Denise A. Norris is an American transgender activist who co-founded the transgender rights activist organisation, The Transexual Menace with Riki Wilchins in 1993. In 2012, she received the Stonewall Spirit of Pride Award from the Stonewall National Museum and Archives for her contributions to the transgender community. In 2014, she created the Institute for Transgender Economic Advancement.
Denise A. Norris is an American transgender activist who co-founded the transgender rights activist organisation, The Transexual Menace with Riki Wilchins in 1993. In 2012, she received the Stonewall Spirit of Pride Award from the Stonewall National Museum and Archives for her contributions to the transgender community. In 2014, she created the Institute for Transgender Economic Advancement.

Biography
Denise Norris was born around 1962. From the age of about 5, she had inexplicable feelings while playing with her mother's makeup. She started cross-dressing at the age of 15 and sneaked out of the house late at night in the clothes of the opposite sex. She was arrested for "impersonating a female", she was quickly released and the charges were dropped. 
In 1980, Denise Norris enrolled as a freshman at the University of Albany, Albany, New York from Garden City, Long Island. In 1981, according to Norris, there were no psychological services or support for LGBT students. She describes that time as “bleak.” Mislabeled as a "science geek", her gender confusion caused her to fail in her studies. As a sophomore, she left school after the fall semester.She transferred to Adelphi University on Long Island, but that didn't help. She dropped out again and did not complete her bachelor's degree. In 1989, Norris began hormone therapy and lived full-time as a woman. In 1992, she underwent gender-affirming surgery at Montefiore Medical Center in the Bronx. She was hired as an IT director at a nonprofit company in Manhattan. 
She became a transgender advocate and legally changed her name and gender. In 2009, she was hired by Accenture and works from home in the Catskill Mountains.

Personal life
Denise Norris got married and had a daughter, Courtney. The marriage ended in divorce.


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