Daily Inspiration: Meet Monroe Banuelos

Hi Monroe, can you start by introducing yourself? We’d love to learn more about how you got to where you are today?
Hello, My name is Monroe Banuelos. I am a 23 year old queer, digital creator, and model. My journey started a long time ago after I escaped ten years of abuse. I was kicked out of my caretaker’s home at 2am and wandered outside for 8+ hours until I finally approached someone for help, all at the age of 16… but that night is when my life started. Experiencing this abuse for so long hindered my ability to recognize my true identity. And while I’ve been a part of the LGBTQ community since I was a child, I didn’t come into my gender identity until I left my abusive household and had been in foster care for over a year. I am a transgender man, a black transgender man. One who loves to create and express himself in various ways. One who also enjoys inspiring and connecting with other queer men who are still finding themselves.

With my platform, I have had the chance to communicate with many beautiful, queer individuals and those are the people I wake up and work hard for every day. Comparing where I am now to how I started, is honestly a gift. The person I was then and the person I am now are two completely different individuals. I am unrecognizable in the sense that, I am constantly changing, constantly improving myself in all forms. The one thing that my past version and my present version have in common, is that our end goal is to be happy. And right now, in my current life, I can honestly say that this is the happiest I’ve ever been but not the happiest I will ever be.

Would you say it’s been a smooth road, and if not what are some of the biggest challenges you’ve faced along the way?
I have most definitely had struggles along the way and continue to face them to this day. My entire identity is a taboo, and everything that I am made up of is outside of the binary. So a struggle is a given. I started off as a very soft, plushy-like type of person, one who had enough love to go around for everyone. But since then, I’ve had many heartbreaks, not just romantic. This isn’t to say that I’m cold or heartless, I just more so have strong boundaries with alot of the things and people in my life. And I wouldn’t have acquired that skill, let alone strength, without struggle.

Thanks for sharing that. So, maybe next you can tell us a bit more about your work?
I don’t particularly specialize in one thing, I just love to let my brain produce whatever idea comes to it at the time. I love to create any and everything that I can. I’ve written a book about my transgender experience; I’ve graphically designed prints and shirts, I own a small business centered around stoners being able to collect the most unique and eccentric paraphernalia they’ve ever seen, I also model and love to create my own concepts and photoshoots with my partner. I just love to have fun and if I make money from it, that’s a plus!

Any advice for finding a mentor or networking in general?
I’ll be honest, networking is so fake in my opinion. It definitely works, however my best and most personal advice to give is to find your community and create. Find your true community, get to know them and start brainstorming some dope concepts to do together. That is where the best results will come. From authenticity and joy, TRUE joy.

Pricing:

• The Book Of Secrets – 14.99
• Clothing – 50.00
• Art Prints – 20.00+
• HotBox (unique stoner pieces) – 55.00