Black Women Who Slayed History: Laverne Cox
This Black History Month, we’re highlighting the black woman who helped make our world what it is today. Today, we honor Laverne Cox.
Caitlyn Jenner has disappointed a lot of people, despite how hard she tried to make trans activism her thing. I mean, she literally supported Trump.
Laverne Cox, on the other hand, was the OG trans activist, and is still going strong. She was the first transgender person to grace the cover of TIME, and she slayed it, obviously.
READ ALSO: Black Women Who Slayed History: Diane Nash
But growing up in Mobile, Alabama, things weren’t always so great for her. Laverne constantly got bullied for looking feminine, and tried to commit suicide at age 11 when she realized that she was attracted to some of her male classmates.
Lucky for us and the rest of the transgender community, she overcame her difficulties, and transferred from the Alabama School of Fine Arts to Marymount Manhattan College in NYC, a place where people are a little more accepting. She then got a gig as a drag queen, a job she still occasionally worked during the first season of “Orange Is The New Black.”
READ ALSO: Black Women Who Slayed History: Shirley Chisholm
Laverne was also the first transgender person to be nominated for an Emmy in an acting category, and the first transgender woman to pose nude for Elle’s annual “Nudes” issue.
Cox has broken many barriers in the entertainment industry not only for transgender women, but more specifically for transgender women of color. She is currently filming an LGBT film called “Freak Show” which is set to be released later this month.
