On June 1, Vanity Fair revealed a preview of their front cover for this year’s July issue. It was a preview that shocked North American society—at least, those who pay attention to pop-culture and social media. The topic of Caitlyn Jenner in general, has sparked many debates over the Internet: some positive and others not. Within 24 hours of the magazine’s reveal, Caitlyn Jenner managed to break the Internet.
As a loyal Keeping Up with the Kardashians fan, I was eager for more information on Caitlyn and her family. Prior to Vanity Fair’s big reveal, I had watched Diane Sawyer’s interview with then, Bruce Jenner. I was completely moved by Caitlyn’s bravery and courage to speak about her struggles and future plans: everything about the interview was captivating. In the interview, the former Olympian expressed her desire to live in the present, and not place herself back into a box of labels. Personally, I was happy for her—choosing to live in the moment and not care about social norms or self imposed obligations.
One of my favourite celebrities, Laverne Cox, expressed her thoughts on Tumblr by writing, “Werk Caitlyn! Get it!” (Or something along those lines). In her post, Cox wrote about the true beauty behind Caitlyn’s reveal to the world: her heart and vulnerability. She brought up a wonderful point because personally, this was something I strongly agreed with. Most of us were too focused with Caitlyn’s physical appearance that we completely neglected the real beauty of Caitlyn: her willingness to share herself with the world and be ashamed of nothing. Her vulnerability was arguably the most inspirational of all.
Cox then touched upon another sensitive topic: the luxuries that come with fame and wealth. She made sure to remind everyone that a majority of transgender individuals lack the privileges that stars have: the ability to undergo costly procedures in order to transition. Again, I was in complete agreement with her as it is a crucial issue to bring awareness to. Although physical change plays a significant role for a transgender individual, we need to understand that it is not the only thing that matters. Society must accept the individual for their chosen identity before judging their outer appearance. We must strive for equality, the way we did and continue to do for the gay community.
Unfortunately, it is no secret that some of North American society is still uncomfortable with the idea of being transgender. In fact, I know for certain that more than half of the individuals I recently spoke with were quite skeptical of Caitlyn Jenner. I was appalled by the lack of respect for Caitlyn and even more so, when people I know personally thought she was suffering from a mental illness. I was disgusted, to say the least. A few individuals claimed that, because Caitlyn was born with a penis, she would forever be a man.
Let me be clear: sex and gender are two very different things. While both are social constructs, a person’s sex is determined by the biological reproductive organs—for example, penis for a male and vagina for a female, while gender is not. Despite having a vagina, an individual may identify as a man, and vice versa. One’s sex does not necessarily determine the gender.
Caitlyn Jenner left us all speechless for varying reasons, but she established a stepping stone for the transgender individuals. By shedding light on her personal story and sharing it with the world, she forced society to acknowledge the complexities of gender identity and started dialog on a subject often considered taboo. As beautiful as she is, I personally believe that her beauty lies in her courage to share herself with millions of people—something that most of us are not brave enough to do.
Because if you’re not living for yourself, who are you living for?
Photo Sources
http://img.elgrafico.mx/sites/default/files/2015/06/caitlyn_jenner.png
http://students.expression.edu/samehearts/files/2014/09/MV5BMTY0NzYzMzc0…
http://upw-prod-images.global.ssl.fastly.net/nugget/555ca5bd353235001ced…
http://31.media.tumblr.com/tumblr_lkm4t4nxab1qh2ex7o1_500.jpg