I’m Mindy Dawn Friedman. Dappermindy to some. My pronouns are they/she.

I am a visual activist, artist, and storyteller living in Decatur, Georgia with my wife, Megan Volpert… author, tarot reader, incense maker, teacher, and the truest mirror I know.

I believe in living out loud. With passion, compassion, flair, and an open heart.

My gender expression is masculine of center and gender non-conforming. It is both authentic and purposeful. When I get dressed, I am not simply choosing an outfit. I am expanding my being. Setting intentions. Saying to anyone who needs to hear it… ‘you are seen here.’

Where It Began

My love of fashion started early. As a kid, I used to buy my dad the most outrageous ties I could find. Bold. Loud. Unapologetic. He rarely wore them… until I said something to him. The next morning, he would put one on, wear it to school (he was a math teacher for over thirty years) and couldn’t make it through a single class or a hallway without someone stopping him to comment on or compliment the tie and to stop to talk.

That was an early lesson. Style as a conversation. A bridge. An act of courage dressed as a necktie.

The bow ties came later for me.

Visual Activism

It started with a panel.
In 2016, I attended South by Southwest in Austin, Texas. Anita Dolce Vita — writer, producer, and editor-in-chief of dapperQ, the world’s leading queer style platform — had produced and moderated the very first queer style panel ever featured at SXSW’s official SXstyle showcase. Queer Style: Visual Activism and Fashion’s Frontier. And sitting in that room… something in me that had been unnamed finally had a name.

Visual activism. The radical, intentional use of personal style to drive visibility and spark dialogue. I had been living it long before that room. But that panel crystallized it. Made clear that what we wear as political. That getting dressed can be an act of resistance, a declaration… a lifeline.

It introduced me to a dream. The dapperQ New York Fashion Week show at the Brooklyn Museum.

I walked that runway in 2018. And again in 2019. And again in 2024. Each time meant something different… because I was different. The world was different. The community gathered in that space was different. But the heartbeat underneath never changed.

Walking the runway isn’t only about the fashion and style. It is about taking up space. Challenging norms. Reminding everyone in that room… the models, the audience, the person in the back who almost didn’t come… that they are seen and valued here.

Diversity on that runway matters because everyone deserves to see themselves represented. Regardless of size, age, ability, race, gender identity, or sexual orientation. I may not be everybody’s cup of tea. But I always hope for that moment of connection… that person in the crowd who sees themselves in me, even a little. That recognition. That exhale.

It is also why I am committed to supporting new models as they step onto that runway for the first time. The dream I carried is a dream worth passing forward. You can read more about what those moments have meant in the blog right here on this site.

#BowTieWednesday

Each week, I show up on Instagram and Facebook for #BowTieWednesday. Part style and lewks. Part love letter. Part call to action.

Because dressing with intention is activism. And activism, done with enough care… becomes art.

In Print

I am proud to have been published in two landmark collections celebrating queer fashion and identity.

dapperQ Style: Ungendering Fashion edited by Anita Dolce Vita. A bold, beautiful anthology that challenges the restrictive binaries of mainstream fashion and makes the case that queer style belongs to everyone, regardless of gender identity, body size, race, age, or ability.

Closet Cases: Queers on What We Wear edited by Megan Volpert. A collection of personal essays, poems, and photographs exploring the profound relationship between clothing and queer identity. Named a Top Nonfiction Book of 2020 by PopMatters.

The Work Continues

In the workplace, I have been a change-maker. Influencing Diversity and Inclusion policy. Helping found Employee Resource Groups designed to uplift members of disenfranchised communities. Today I bring that same commitment to my work at ALSAC, the fundraising and awareness organization for St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital, where mission is not just a word on a wall.

Influencers

Along the way I have been shaped by true trail-blazers. NiK Kacy, Anita Dolce Vita, Gabrielle Claiborne, Sonny Oram… people who have transformed, transcended, and transitioned the conversation around gender presentation. Iris Apfel. A true icon who embodied something bigger than beauty. She embodied style and authenticity. Transcending, enticing an intersectional cadre to be yourself. More is more. My voice would not be as imaginative, clear, or as focused without theirs.

What I Believe

The best way to honor those brave and courageous souls who fought for the freedoms we carry today is to show up. Fully. Visibly. Unapologetically. Building intersectional bridges with joy as resistance and existence.

I seek to erase fear and secure hope. A future where our most vulnerable communities can achieve equity and equality.

That future is worth dressing for.

Look for #BowTieWednesday.
It’s yours. Read it out loud when you can… that’s always where the last few adjustments reveal themselves.