‘A League of Their Own’ remake shows what it’s like to be Black and trans in the 1940s

By Tat Bellamy-Walker, NBC News

Lea Robinson, a Black nonbinary and transgender actor, plays the role of a Black trans man known as Bertie Hart in the new Amazon series.

The joys and challenges of being a Black transgender man during the 1940s are on full display in the hit queer remake of “A League of Their Own,” which debuted on Amazon this month. 

Lea Robinson (pronounced Lee), a Black transgender and nonbinary actor, plays  Bertie Hart, the uncle of Maxine “Max” Chapman (Chante Adams). Hart is estranged from his family and lives with his wife, Gracie (Patrice Covington). The show, which was co-created and executive produced by Will Graham and Abbi Jacobson, is a queer adaptation of the 1992 Penny Marshall-directed sports comedy-drama about the real-life All-American Girls Professional Baseball League (AAGPBL). The series is set in a time when many baseball teams in the U.S. were racially segregated and women faced sexist barriers to playing on professional teams.

Robinson, who uses “they” and “he” pronouns, said that the remake highlights important narratives of that time, and  that he hopes the show can encourage more conversations about race, gender and sexuality.

“What’s so powerful about this series is we get to see some of the other stories that were not told,” said Robinson, who lives in California, adding that the remake not only highlights the struggles, but “also, a lot of joy that these characters were creating for each other, for themselves and for their communities.”

Learn more about the representation in this new series.

The show mirrors discrimination that Black trans people experience in real life.

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