InTouch Weekly's latest magazine cover features a Photoshopped image of Bruce Jenner, in makeup & a feminine outfit, alongside an article titled: "Bruce Jenner’s Gender Identity: What Should We Think?" The article speculates about Bruce's gender identity and questions when he is going to come out as trans*.
The makeup in the photo
isn’t real, and
it's not even Jenner's body -- it belongs to "Dynasty" star Stephanie Beacham. Jenner has never uttered a word about being trans* or implied that he plans to transition, and it is wrong of InTouch to speculate like this.
Publicly speculating as to whether or not someone will be coming out as trans* illustrates a flippant lack of empathy toward people who actually struggle with making a gender transition. It illustrates a disregard for the struggles trans* people face and
robs Jenner of his right to identify as he wishes.Robbing someone of the right to identify as the gender they choose often has dire consequences. When many trans* people try to live as the gender they feel is right for them, they are met with an onslaught of opposition and even violence. Consider the case of Leelah Alcorn. Her parents refused to accept her wish to transition from male to female, forcing her to see therapists who convinced her to quell this urge, and as a result she was driven to suicide.
It is this robbing of self-determination that makes life so difficult for trans* folks, and InTouch Weekly should know better. Russell Brand has publicly
spoken out against this "bullying."
InTouch's latest cover shows how media (and society in general) continues to place far too much emphasis on speculating about people's private issues.
It is never okay to rob people of their right to choice and self-determination. Please sign the petition to tell InTouch Weekly to apologize for its insensitivity toward trans* individuals!