Good Luck Jenna!

Jenna Talackova has arrived in Toronto for the Miss Canada Universe pageant and what she hopes will be a successful history making conclusion to the end of her week of competition.

As you loyal TransGriot readers are aware of she fought a pitched battle to remain a contestant in the 2012 Miss Canada Universe pageant after she was disqualified under the bogus 'natural born woman' rule.

That rule was instituted by pageant owner Donald Trump after the 2001 Miss Universe pageant competition in Puerto Rico included rumors that Miss France Elodie Gossuin was a transwoman.


Talackova was reinstated after her dismissal sparked worldwide outrage, an online petition that garnered over 30,000 signatures and saw Los Angeles based attorney Gloria Allred taking up her case. 

The natural born woman' rule has been dropped and all national pageants in the Miss Universe system starting in 2013 will be open to transwomen in those nations who meet the Miss Universe pageant contestant eligibility requirements.


But many pageant fans eyes around the world this week will turn toward the Great White North and be focused on the 23 year old Talackova's history making turn as the first open transwomen to compete in a predominately cis female pageant. 

You still have time to vote for Jenna in the Miss Canada Universe's People's Choice Award that will be announced on May 17

The people checking out the happenings in Toronto will include my pageant happy transsisters from the Philippines and Thailand and probably China's Chen Lili.   She was the 2004 Miss China delegate but was denied the opportunity to compete because of that now defunct 'natural born woman' rule.  

She's got 65 people she's competing against for the honor of representing Canada in the upcoming Miss Universe pageant that is scheduled.to be held in December 2012 in a venue to be determined.  

If she does win the Miss Universe Canada one, she would make history again as the first open trans contestant to compete and win her national pageant in addition to becoming the first transwoman to openly compete in the Miss Universe pageant.

Wouldn't that cause a major spike in the television ratings for the 2012 Miss Universe pageant?

Best of luck Jenna.  Your trans sisters in your home and native land and around the globe are rooting for you to win. 

Even if you don't leave Toronto on May 19 with the crown, you did something far more important by fighting an injustice aimed at you, jump starting a worldwide conversation about our humanity, femininity and getting people to recognize how transphobic and stupid that 'natural born woman' rule was.

You also smashed a glass ceiling by getting this iconic pageant system to open its doors to young transwomen around the world who may have dreamed of winning this title and can now make it happen.

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