To commemorate Trans Day of Remembrance on Nov 20, 2011 Xtra spoke with Lucas Silveira, Patrick Califia and Buck Angel.

The three trans activists tell their stories and discuss how they came to recognize that surgery or hormone therapy was the only road to happiness.

“It was life or death for me,” says pornstar and educator Buck Angel. “I had already attempted suicide twice.”

The desire to transition is so great for some that many people are now choosing to forgo assistance from the established medical community.

“Transition is consumer driven,” says author and activist Patrick Califia.

“The truth is if you are determined to transition and you have enough money, you can go and do it tomorrow.”

Below is our video report.