After months of questioning, paparazzi pictures and silence, Bruce Jenner finally sat down with Diane Sawyer to address the gossip related to his gender identity.
“For all intents and purposes, I am a woman,” Jenner told Sawyer after wiping his eyes with a tissue.
The former Olympic athlete opened up about what he has been struggling with his entire life: being transgender.
Sawyer tried to explain to Jenner that many people will be confused due to the fact that he has always been seen as the masculine, American hero who won a gold medal in the 1976 Summer Olympics.
“People look at me differently. They see you as a macho male, but my heart and soul and everything that I do in life – it is part of me. That female side is part of me. That’s who I am,” said Jenner.
Jenner even went as far as saying that although he identifies as a woman, he can still “kick butt.”
Despite the fact that Jenner recognizes he is a transgender female, he prefers to keep the familiar “he” and “him” pronouns while he is transitioning.
He did, however, often refer to himself as “her”. This is Jenner’s way of describing who he is when he is at his happiest – himself.
Sawyer showed a picture of Jenner at the Summer Olympics, smiling with his arms outreached, and asked who that person was.
Jenner smiled and replied, “That is me, that is her.”
Jenner even recognized the transgender community, after scoffing at the idea that he was going through this process for publicity.
“What I’m doing is going to do some good, and we’re going to change the world,” he said.
Jenner even called attention to the fact that black transgender females make up the group that is most likely to be killed or raped in the LGBT community.
While he seemed to be completely comfortable opening up to America, telling his children was a little more difficult for Jenner.
He had to tell not only his six biological children, but also the Kardashian children as well.
While some took the news graciously, like Bruce’s son Brandon Jenner, others had a hard time accepting the news.
Kim Kardashian admitted Jenner’s decision to transition into a woman was hard for her to understand until her husband, Kanye West, discussed it with her.
Kanye told Kim, “Look it, I can be married to the most beautiful woman in the world, and I am. I can have the most beautiful little daughter in the world. I have that. But I’m nothing, if I can’t be me. If I can’t be true to myself, they don’t mean anything.”
After the interview aired, the Jenner-Kardashian family used social media to express their overwhelming love and respect for Bruce.
Jenner’s ex-wife Kris Jenner took to Twitter to say, “Not only was I able to call him my husband for 25 years and the father of my children, I am now able to call him my hero.”
What do you think about Bruce Jenner’s decision to transition into a female?
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