Caitlyn Jenner made a bigger cultural splash than Rachel Dolezal, but it's interesting that one is to be completely accepted and celebrated while the other is to be cast to outer darkness... because her own outer darkness was a lie.
Apparently gender reassignment is cool beans, but racial reassignment is... too new? If women face more discrimination than men, perhaps Caitlyn was brave for undergoing the transformation to nullify her inherited Y chromosome. Certainly African American's face more discrimination than whites, but to label herself as African American and dye her skin and frizz her hair, as Rachel Dolezal did... well, it didn't go over well. But Rachel underwent the transformation to fight for the rights of African Americans. She lied to fight for a race outside her own, and what's more, she thought the lie was necessary. The lie offended more than the work she put in for equality, and she lost her job as president of the NAACP in Spokane.
on the other hand...
Bruce Jenner was trapped in a gender that felt wrong. S/he made a personal choice... not for the rights of women, but because of an internal self-actualization externally realized.
... said hey Bruce, take a walk on the wild side.
But is it impossible to imagine that Rachel may have felt trapped in a race she didn't identify with? Is this concept offensive? Maybe Caitlyn and Rachel are like apples and oranges and my comparison is absurd.
Maybe sexism and racism have zero correlation, but I find it fascinating that two dramatic external metamorphoses could be spun in opposite directions by the media.
Apparently gender reassignment is cool beans, but racial reassignment is... too new? If women face more discrimination than men, perhaps Caitlyn was brave for undergoing the transformation to nullify her inherited Y chromosome. Certainly African American's face more discrimination than whites, but to label herself as African American and dye her skin and frizz her hair, as Rachel Dolezal did... well, it didn't go over well. But Rachel underwent the transformation to fight for the rights of African Americans. She lied to fight for a race outside her own, and what's more, she thought the lie was necessary. The lie offended more than the work she put in for equality, and she lost her job as president of the NAACP in Spokane.
on the other hand...
Bruce Jenner was trapped in a gender that felt wrong. S/he made a personal choice... not for the rights of women, but because of an internal self-actualization externally realized.
... said hey Bruce, take a walk on the wild side.
But is it impossible to imagine that Rachel may have felt trapped in a race she didn't identify with? Is this concept offensive? Maybe Caitlyn and Rachel are like apples and oranges and my comparison is absurd.
Maybe sexism and racism have zero correlation, but I find it fascinating that two dramatic external metamorphoses could be spun in opposite directions by the media.
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