Eureka Springs Sees You
- John-Michael Scurio
- 13 minutes ago
- 6 min read
In 2025, Transgender Day of Remembrance (TDOR) will take place on November 20, which falls on a Thursday. This day is marked by vigils and memorials held in various communities worldwide, where names of the deceased are read aloud, and participants reflect on the impact of violence against transgender individuals.
Visibility is one of the most profoundly human experiences we can offer one another. To be seen, truly seen, is to feel a pulse in the chest that says: Welcome home. You matter here. You are safe here.
And in a world where transgender people often walk through life navigating uncertainty, coded glances, whispered comments, or the weight of invisibility altogether, a community that offers genuine recognition becomes nothing short of sacred.
Eureka Springs, Arkansas, our quirky, art-soaked, rainbow-drenched, mountain-hugged gem of the Ozarks has been that sanctuary for decades.
Here, the Victorian porches lean forward like curious, welcoming friends. The streets curve like arms in an embrace. The springs whisper stories of healing, and the hills hold secrets of love, liberation, and legacy.
And for residents, wanderers, pilgrims, vacationers, seekers and people from all walks of life, Eureka Springs has long been a place where visibility isn’t a battle. It’s a birthright.
Today, we journey through what it means to be transgender and visible in a town that has championed LGBTQIA+ life long before corporate rainbow logos and hashtag campaigns.
This is a story about authenticity, courage, community, and the iridescent magic of being seen exactly as you are — in a place that says: You Belong Here.
Not far from Eureka Springs, in Bentonville, Arkansas, there is a place called, The Momentary. This place is a modern, multidisciplinary arts hub, and it's a really special place. It redefines what an “art museum” can be: not just static galleries, but a living, breathing art ecosystem.
What I love most about The Momentary is the message being sent to the world with its large, red neon sign - You Belong Here!
When the rest of America thinks of Arkansas, many don't think about visibility and belonging but after years of living here and getting to know many Arkansans, I've come to learn, time and again, that this state will surprise you.
Visibility is more than standing out. Visibility is being recognized.
It’s the moment someone looks at you and doesn’t scan you for “proof,” “explanations,” or “reasons.”
It’s when a stranger smiles at you in Basin Park without hesitation. When a shopkeeper uses the right name and pronouns like it’s the most natural thing in the world. When you walk into BREWS or the Gravel Bar at Wanderoo Lodge and the server says, “Hey, love. What are you having today?”
To someone cisgender, this might feel ordinary or unremarkable even. But for someone transgender, that moment can be life-changing; and for many, it has been, from the moment they stepped foot onto Eureka's soil.
Visibility is safety.
Visibility is validation.
Visibility is joy.
Visibility is life.
Across the globe, transgender people face erasure, discrimination, and sometimes violence simply for existing. Yet in the hills and hollers of Eureka Springs, something different grows ... something rare and powerful.
Here, we have a culture of acceptance that is so organic, so longstanding, so deeply rooted in the town’s identity that it feels like stepping inside a warm hug.
People travel here from all over the world not just for Diversity Weekend or the Halloween Zombie Crawl, but because the air here vibrates with permission to be one’s truest self.
The History
To understand the present, we have to honor the path that brought us here.
Eureka Springs has always been a town for outsiders ... in the most beautiful way. A town of misfits, creatives, healers, spiritual wanderers, dreamers, survivors and black sheep. A place where people who didn’t “fit” somewhere else came to find freedom.
A Refuge from the Beginning
In the late 1800s, people flocked to the healing waters of Eureka Springs shortly after the discovery of Basin Spring (now in the center of Basin Spring Park.) Not just the sick, but the spiritually unmoored. The emotionally wounded. People seeking reinvention. Eureka Springs was, from the beginning, a sanctuary for reinvention.
So, when the LGBTQIA+ community began finding its way here decades later, the town did what it has always done -- it opened its arms without reservation.
By the 1970s and 80s, LGBT people were woven into the cultural fabric of Eureka Springs ... not in secret, not in the shadows, but in the open.
Where Diversity Weekend Was Born
While many towns in the U.S. resisted LGBT visibility back in the 70s & 80s, Eureka Springs embraced it. Diversity Weekends began in 2001 and quickly turned into legendary celebrations of identity, community, and self-expression.
Drag shows weren’t hidden, but headlined. Gender expression wasn’t policed, but applauded. Transgender people weren’t tolerated, but treasured.
When other places said, and continue to say, “Not here,” Eureka Springs emits to all:
“Come as you are. Stay as long as you want. Be exactly who you are meant to be.”
Why Visibility Matters
Transgender visibility is not a trend or a hashtag. It’s a lifeline.
Visibility Saves Lives
We come to know (from countless studies and lived experiences) that acceptance dramatically reduces the risk of depression, isolation, self-harm and the death toll among transgender people.
But visibility does more than prevent pain. Visibility cultivates joy.
Every time a transgender person is warmly acknowledged, represented, and embraced, it says: "Your identity is valid. Your experience is real. Your presence enriches us."
Visibility Creates Community
Transgender people often grow up without elders or role models who share their life experience. Visibility allows people to see what’s possible.
A transgender teenage girl walking down Spring Street seeing a transgender woman living confidently in her truth? That’s a lighthouse.
A nonbinary artist selling work at the farmers market? That’s liberation.
A trans man hiking the trails around Black Bass Lake with a group of affirming friends? That’s belonging.
Visibility is contagious ... in the best possible way.
"To Be Seen Is To Be Loved." /John-Michael Scurio
Visibility Makes a Town Stronger
When everyone can show up authentically, a community becomes more creative, more compassionate, and more vibrant.
And with its flamboyant spirit, artistic roots, and fiercely protective heart, our beloved Eureka Springs becomes even more magical when transgender voices and stories shine.
A Transgender Sanctuary
Here’s the truth: There are places transgender people visit where they must prepare (mentally, emotionally, and physically) for the experience they're about to walk into.
Eureka Springs is not one of those places.
You don't need permission here. You don’t need to apologize. You don’t need to justify anything. You don’t need to shrink, soften, disguise, or hide.
Whether you’re walking hand-in-hand with your partner down Main Street … Getting fitted for jewelry in one of our adorable shops … Trying on hats at Hats, Hides & Heirlooms … Or sipping a mimosa at Brews …
You can breathe.
Not cautiously - but freely.
“Transgender Day of Remembrance seeks to highlight the losses we face due to anti-transgender bigotry and violence. I am no stranger to the need to fight for our rights, and the right to simply exist is first and foremost. With so many seeking to erase transgender people — sometimes in the most brutal ways possible — it is vitally important that those we lose are remembered, and that we continue to fight for justice.” -- Transgender Day of Remembrance founder Gwendolyn Ann Smith
A Culture of Authenticity
The shopkeepers, the bartenders, the servers, the innkeepers ... they aren’t simply “tolerant.” They are welcoming. Warm. Curious in the best way. Respectful. Affirming.
They see transgender people not as visitors, but as cherished threads in the tapestry of the town.
Workshops, support groups, healing circles, art nights, and informal meetups become powerful spaces of connection.
And even outside these events, the vibe of the town is a celebration of freedom.
If you’re transgender in Eureka Springs, you’re not an exception.
You’re part of the family.❤️
