Doing It My Way
Angelica Ross Is More Than a Scene-Stealer
The Pose and American Horror Story actress and activist opens up about the presidential election, Buddhism, and mending a broken relationship
We know Angelica Ross as a scene-stealing actress and firebrand activist, but she’s also a technology nerd at heart. Before she landed prime-time TV roles on Pose and American Horror Story, making her the first transgender actor to land two series-regular roles, she taught herself how to code. Tech wasn’t just a hobby. It helped Ross navigate “a very treacherous path to womanhood,” she tells ZORA. “By using technology, by finding safe spaces online, by finding employment and training opportunities online, [I curated] my own personal blueprint. My own personal way out.”
That blueprint helped the Wisconsin native secure a leading role in the Emmy-nominated web series Her Story to jumpstart her acting career. In 2014, Ross launched Trans Tech Social, a company that empowers trans and gender nonconforming people through on-the-job training and workplace skills. Since then, she’s scored a Louis Vuitton ad campaign and hosted a presidential candidate forum on LGBTQ issues.
