Transsexual Canadian Beauty Queen Asks Trump to Eliminate Miss Universe Rule
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FREDERIC J. BROWN/AFP/Getty Images(LOS ANGELES) — Jenna Talackova, the Canadian transsexual beauty queen, is asking that Donald Trump eliminate the rule that Miss Universe contestants must be naturally born females.
“I want Mr. Trump to state that this rule will be eliminated because I do not want any other woman to suffer from the discrimination that I have endured,” Talackova said during a press conference Tuesday.
“I have never asked for special consideration. I only wanted to compete,” Talackova said.
Talackova was originally disqualified from the 2012 Miss Universe Canada competition because she was not a “naturally born female,” according to Gloria Allred, Talackova’s attorney. Talackova was born a male but had sexual reassignment surgery at age 19.
“Mr. Trump, admit that you are wrong and get rid of your Trumped-up rule,” Allred said during the press conference.
“She [Jenna] did not think for one moment that what she looked like at birth would be relevant. She did not ask Mr. Trump to prove that he is a naturally born man,” Allred said.
The Trump organization announced Monday that it will not attempt to keep Talackova out of the competition.
“The Miss Universe Organization will allow Jenna Talackova to compete in the 2012 Miss Universe Canada pageant provided she meets the legal gender recognition requirements of Canada, and the standards established by other international competitions,” Michael D. Cohen, Trump’s executive vice president and special counsel, said in an email.
But this statement was not enough for Talackova and Allred, who called it “confusing.”
“It isn’t just about her being able to compete,” Allred said. “It’s about the elimination of the rule for others. Jenna is standing up for others, not just herself.”
Trump’s organization issued a statement saying, “Gloria Allred’s statements to the press today pay no mind to the fact that Mr. Trump and the Miss Universe Organization made the fair and just decision in allowing Jenna to compete in the Miss Universe 2012 Canada pageant.
“Pageant rules have been modernized to ensure this type of issue does not occur again. Gloria’s arguments were made moot by the decision rendered yesterday…. Like all the contestants, Mr. Trump wishes Jenna the best of luck in her quest for the crown.”
Although Trump’s original statement says that Talackova may compete, she and Allred avoided questions during the press conference of whether she will compete if the rule is not eliminated.
The blonde beauty’s birth certificate, passport, and driver’s license all reflect that she is a woman, Allred said during the press conference. They believe that should be enough for the competition.
The beauty queen has not tried to hide her past. In a 2010 YouTube video for Miss International Queen, a transgender/transsexual competition in which Talackova was a contestant, she stated that she began hormone therapy at age 14. At 19, she had sexual reassignment surgery.
The crown for Miss Universe Canada will be awarded May 19 in Toronto.
Copyright 2012 ABC News Radio