Miss Universe Canada are a bunch of Transphobic fucks

[Instant Sunrise]

She’s blond, 6-foot-1, and has the body of a goddess.

Vancouver’s Jenna Talackova was everything Miss Universe Canada was looking for when she was selected among 65 finalists for the 2012 competition, to be held in Toronto in May.

But the Donald Trump–owned beauty pageant confirmed Friday that the 23-year-old has been disqualified from the competition.

The reason, Talackova claims, is she was born male.

“She did not meet the requirements to compete despite having stated otherwise on her entry form,” stated a Miss Universe Canada release issued on Friday.

“We do, however, respect her goals, determination and wish her the best,” it concludes, without specifying what requirements she did not meet.

Talackova set the blogosphere abuzz earlier this week after it was discovered she had sexual reassignment surgery in 2010.

Her profile and photos from the pageant’s website were subsequently pulled.

The statuesque blond told The Province Friday she needs to speak to her lawyer before taking part in interviews.

But Talackova has made statements online over Twitter about being “disqualified for being born.”

By March 18, she had apparently already been told by Miss Universe Canada her place in the competition was in jeopardy.

“Still waiting to know if I’m able to compete ... praying and fingers crossed,” she Tweeted that day.

Two days later, she got the news.

“I’m disqualified, however I’m not giving up,” she wrote, defiantly. “I’m not going to just let them disqualify me over discrimination.”

Responses to her plight posted online have been mixed.

Some have welcomed her inclusion in the competition, while others believe such pageants are for women born as women.

Miss Universe Canada contestants must meet a basic requirement of being a Canadian citizen and between the ages of 18 and 27 to compete.

They also must not be married, pregnant, and have to fill out a more comprehensive form if they meet the basic requirements.

There is no mention of rules regarding sex-changes or cosmetic surgery.

Talackova has been rather open about her transsexual past online.

During an interview for a transsexual beauty pageant in Thailand — Miss International Queen 2010 — the Canadian representative refers to herself as “a woman, with a history.”

That history includes recognizing herself as a female since the age of four and beginning hormone therapy when she was 14.

This is one of the biggest load of transphobic bullshit I've ever read.

There's literally no stated reason to exclude somebody for being trans* in the rules, and yet they openly denied this woman the chance to compete for that reason alone.

I guess idiots would rather just pretend that people like me don't exist.

[PeZook]

I guess idiots would rather just pretend that people like me don't exist.

Of course they would rather do that than deal with an unpleasant reality of...uh...a hot woman...having been a man. Biologically. Not quite. At some point in the past.

I'd love to see the future where sexuality was treated more like hair color: people make note of it and then go on living their lives. Because it seems that current attitudes keep making mountains out of molehills.

[Simon_Jester]

Random question that occured to me: If they had a rule against plastic surgery, would this still be unfair?

Also, I wonder what percentage of their candidates that would disqualify, if they did have such a rule...

[spaceviking]

Well, even if they let her compete they would never allow her to win.

[Serafina]

Random question that occured to me: If they had a rule against plastic surgery, would this still be unfair?

Also, I wonder what percentage of their candidates that would disqualify, if they did have such a rule...

Yes, it would, if she ONLY had SRS, because SRS doesn't improve your looks in any way (unless we are talking about wearing tight panties, and even then it doesn't provide any unfair advantage).
Now there are plenty of transwoman who had FFS (facial feminization surgery), which would be disqualified by such a rule - but that would be an "everyone is equal"-case.

[Simon_Jester]

The main thing I was thinking of when I wrote that was breast implants, especially in the second question: "Also, I wonder what percentage of their candidates that would disqualify, if they did have such a rule..."

I bet they'd have about three contestants left.

[Korto]

Could be an element here too, of not the organisers being a bunch of transphobic fucks (although they may well be), but they believing their viewers to be a bunch of transphobic fucks.

[Instant Sunrise]

Could be an element here too, of not the organisers being a bunch of transphobic fucks (although they may well be), but they believing their viewers to be a bunch of transphobic fucks.

In my opinion, acting *phobic on behalf of an imagined group is just as bad as doing it on your own beliefs.

[Korto]

Agreed, but it's a different motive. Rational greed instead of irrational hatred.

[Ralin]

In my opinion, acting *phobic on behalf of an imagined group is just as bad as doing it on your own beliefs.

Not that it justifies it, but I don't think we're talking about an imagined group here.

[Akhlut]

I can't even read the comments on stories about this. It just sets my blood boiling to see such pigheaded ignorance on display.

I wish I knew a better way to respond to such things, but seeing the torrents of stupidity on display makes me unwilling to even try.

[evilsoup]

You are technically correct, Korto, but I don't see how that makes a difference in practice. Discrimination is discrimination no matter what the motivation for it.

[Solauren]

“She did not meet the requirements to compete despite having stated otherwise on her entry form,” stated a Miss Universe Canada release issued on Friday

Not to defend this kind of discrimination (BTW, googled the young lady in question; she'd do well in the competition via looks), but it's possible there is something in form or contract or rules that could disqualify her based on her birth gender. From a legal stand-point, she was not born female. From a genetic/chromonal stand-point, she was probably not born female. (I have no idea how genetics and transexuality/transgenderism work). That would be the cause for disqualification.

If that's the case, they were probably put in to deal with cross-dressing to win the prize or something. If so, then there needs to be amendments made to account for SRS. SRS is not something you do casually or switch between to win pagenants or something.

[Serafina]

Not to defend this kind of discrimination (BTW, googled the young lady in question; she'd do well in the competition via looks), but it's possible there is something in form or contract or rules that could disqualify her based on her birth gender. From a legal stand-point, she was not born female. From a genetic/chromonal stand-point, she was probably not born female. (I have no idea how genetics and transexuality/transgenderism work). That would be the cause for disqualification.

I find it EXTREMELY unlikely that they actually ask for "birth gender" or "do you have XX-chromosomes"*. They asked for sex with the standard "male/female"-options, and she put down "female". Her legal sex should be female already, since she had SRS and changing your legal sex is possible for transsexual people in Canada (albeit needlessly complicated). Therefore she did nothing wrong in filling out that form.

A male crossdresser could not legally put down "female" on that form and would this be disqualified if he falsely filled it out. The woman in question didn't do so.

*Doing so would actually be discrimination in it's own right in Germany, as long as it is not done for medical purposes.

[Solauren]

100% agree with you that it's extremely unlikely. Obviously, something needs to be done to correct this. The question is what?

I'm hoping the problem is some out-of-date rule or something.

[Grumman]

At the risk of inspiring a pile-on, I disagree with the OP. They are not discriminating against Talackova for being transsexual, they are discriminating against Talackova for being a man. We are not talking about discrimination against a competitor for being transgendered, homosexual or even transsexual, but simply refusing to accept a counterfactual claim.

[evilsoup]

She's had the gender reassignment surgery, for pretty much all practical purposes she's a woman.

Unless chromosomes are vitally important for beauty pageants?

[Ralin]

She has a female brain, that makes her a woman. Everything else is just a birth defect.

You stupid, bigoted fuck.

[tim31]

Everyone remember when Miriam Rivera was the subject of a tv show in which they basically allowed men to become sexually and possibly emotionally attracted to her before she revealed to them that she was pre-op? And that the men involved sued the producers for being publically humiliated? That was only nine years ago. Attitudes aren't changing fast enough. Hell, it's been said on here that transpersons are the poor cousins in the the LGBT hierachy. If they can't get unanimous support from that base...

[Ralin]

Yeah, one thing that really drives home to me how bad transpeople have it is that when you live in the US and gay people look down on you, you must be pretty fucked.

[madd0ct0r]

At the risk of inspiring a pile-on, I disagree with the OP. They are not discriminating against Talackova for being transsexual, they are discriminating against Talackova for being a man. We are not talking about discrimination against a competitor for being transgendered, homosexual or even transsexual, but simply refusing to accept a counterfactual claim.

Gruman - you shithead - how do you define gender?

[Thanas]

It may be that they decided her hormone treatment meant that she gained an unfair advantage much in the same way cosmetic surgery might. That is about the only thing I can think off that does not eliminate her for a reason other than discrimination.

[loomer]

At the risk of inspiring a pile-on, I disagree with the OP. They are not discriminating against Talackova for being transsexual, they are discriminating against Talackova for being a man. We are not talking about discrimination against a competitor for being transgendered, homosexual or even transsexual, but simply refusing to accept a counterfactual claim.

Hormone therapy, plastic surgery, and full reassignment surgery all say she's a woman - and unless she's very odd, so does brain chemistry. She is, for all intents and purposes except reproduction, a woman. The claim is not counterfactual.

[Grumman]

Gruman - you shithead - how do you define gender?

Gender pretty much amounts to a bunch of stereotypes about how males or females think and act. Sex - which is what we're actually talking about - is a physical attribute, independent of the creature's capacity to recognise it.

[evilsoup]

OK fine.
Apart from certain medical tests, it is impossible to tell this woman apart from any other woman. Her sex is surely female then?
Or are you seriously saying that her chromosomes are important here?