Last month, Caitlyn Jenner and Glamour magazine came under fire when rumors spread that the magazine would be awarding Jenner with the title of “Woman of the Year.” Well, it turns out that Jenner shared that title with several women last night when Glamour held their annual Women of the Year Awards and Jenner was honored with the Trans Champion award.
According to People, during her acceptance speech, Jenner spoke about her transition, joking, “There was a French activist and writer, Simone de Beauvoir, who said, ‘You are not born woman. You become one’ … Words I live by.”
She also explained that, although she’s suffered great pains during her transition, she believes her life’s purpose was to become Caitlyn and shine a light on the trans community.
“My transition was very, very long. I had many, many, many years of isolation from the world, of lying to the world, of not being myself. I got to a few years ago; I was back out in Malibu in my home, all alone. I raised wonderful children. And I thought: ‘What am I gonna do with my life?’ I isolated myself and lied to myself and lied to the world for so long: ‘What am I gonna do with my life?’ ” Jenner said.
“I sat down with my pastor, talked to him about my issues. And yes, I had a lot of conversations with God. I came to the conclusion: You know what? Maybe this is why God put me on this Earth — to tell my story. To be authentic to myself, to who I am. And maybe in doing that, maybe you can make a difference in the world. What a great opportunity in life to have,” she explained.
Congratulations to Jenner on winning the award and we hope she continues to inspire and open people’s eyes to the lives and stories of transgender people.
