When Jenna Talackova was disqualified from the Miss Universe Canada for being born male, her story made headlines all over the world. But since successfully fighting the rules to re-enter the competition, the 25-year-old has pushed even farther to pursue a career in modelling and acting.
Her journey to follow through on her ambitions, without being pigeonholed, has been documented in a new E! series that premieres this Sunday: “Brave New Girls”. Talackova discusses the media firestorm than surrounded her in 2012, why she doesn’t want her transgender identity to be seen as a gimmick, and why she’s decided to share her story, on different terms, today.
“I love telling my story to people as long as they approach me in a respectful manner,” she said. ‘I had no role models who were transgender, and I want to be that kind of girl.”
For more, listen to the CBC Radio podcast.
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