Early last week, it was impossible to visit one’s Facebook newsfeed or a traditional media outlet without seeing people talk about the latest issue of Vanity Fair, featuring a woman with the declaration “Call me Caitlyn” emblazoned across the cover. Wearing the words as a badge of honor, Caitlyn Jenner was ready for the world to meet her.
While many commended Jenner for her courage to go through her transition to a woman in the public eye, there were, of course, those who chose to diminish Jenner’s decision. The backlash was only amplified when it was announced that ESPN would honor Jenner with the Arthur Ashe Courage Award next month at the annual ESPY Award ceremony. The criticism ignited when a meme made its rounds, which stated that an Army veteran named Noah Galloway, who lost parts of his left arm and leg in an explosion while on active duty in Iraq, was the runner-up for the Courage Award. People took the image at face value and were unafraid to share their disgust with ESPN for passing over a “true” hero in favor of Jenner.
In fact, there are no runners-up for the award, ESPN confirmed, and the meme was simply wrong. The company stands by its decision to honor Jenner at the ESPYS, with executive producer Marua Mandt stating, “The ESPYS are honored to celebrate Bruce becoming Caitlyn. She has shown the courage to embrace a truth that had been hidden for years, and to embark on a journey that may not only give comfort to those facing similar circumstances, but can also help to educate people on the challenges that the transgender community faces.”
There is a great deal of irony in the condemnation that ESPN and Jenner are receiving for the honor. You see, all of the negativity that people are spewing in what is a monumental hour for Caitlyn Jenner is exactly why she deserves the award. By dismissing Jenner and what she has done in making her transition public as something that is not brave, people are tautologically proving that she is as brave as they come. She is standing confidently as the woman she should be proud to be in the face of ignorance and hatred. Nobody’s courage is any more legitimate than anyone else’s. She is brave because she is able to say, “Call me Caitlyn” in a world in which many will refuse to do so.
Despite all of the attention that Jenner’s announcement has garnered, misconceptions persist about the decisions that she has made. She chose to undergo facial-feminization surgery. She did not choose to be transgender. The only decisions that Caitlyn Jenner has made are to finally live the life that she has always wanted to, that she feels she was meant to, and to do so on the public stage so that one day others in the same situation might be able to make the same decision and not face the same scrutiny. While the Vanity Fair issue was immeasurably significant, hopefully the issues of acceptance, respect, and equality are the next to go viral.
Indeed, Jenner’s eldest children all expressed happiness for their father and inspiration at Jenner’s bravery. It is important to remember, however, that Jenner did not undergo gender transition to prove her bravery to detractors on the Internet or even to her kids. She hopes to help the transgender community, specifically working to lower the astonishing suicide rate, but she did not do this for them either. Jenner declared, “Call me Caitlyn” for herself, so that she could be who she always knew she was without hiding from anyone or anything. After 65 years of living a lie, she is letting herself put herself first. At the end of the day, loving yourself for who you are is the bravest thing anyone can do.
