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The Uncompromising Emerson Sloane: Before

"My little brother and me. I am 8 in this picture"
Emerson Sloane
"My little brother and me. I am 8 in this picture"

"And the question became, 'Can you live like this from here on out?' And when that answer became, 'No,' I knew I had to do something."

Duluth's Emerson Sloane started making compromises when she was five years old.

Even then, she knew that she would not be allowed to live an authentic life.

Until she hit her 40s. And even though she had an established life - and business - here in town, the answer to the question, "Are you willing to
live like this from here on out?" came back "No."

Emerson Sloane sat down with KUMD's Lisa Johnson for an unsparing look at her life, before, during, and after her transition to truth. The conversation was by turns funny,
irreverent, serious, tearful ... but it was always deeply personal and, to borrow the phrase, consistent, persistent and insistent.

Pre-transition. About 35 years old.
Emerson Sloane
Pre-transition. About 35 years old.

Tomorrow on part 2 of "The Uncompromising Emerson Sloane," she takes us through the transition process: from her decision, through finding doctors, medical setbacks, and navigating transition through a pandemic lockdown. It's a first-hand look at what one person felt, compromising her way through her life ... and the courage it took to ask for something different.

Lisa Johnson has been a broadcast journalist for 41 years ... and a radio announcer for a teensy bit longer.