American Apparel Debuts First Transgender Model: Great or Gimmicky?

by SodaHead Living Posted 2012/06/15 19:00:00

Related Topics: Fashion, American Apparel, Isis King, Transgender, Model, Gay, Rights, Pride, equality, Style, Ads, Apparel, President, New York, Clothing, American, LGBT, News, America

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	Great	603 votes	57%
	Gimmicky	461 votes	43%

June is LGBT Pride Month, making it the perfect time for American Apparel to debut its first transgender model, former "America’s Next Top Model" contestant Isis King. King, 26, appears in a series of new ads for the provocative clothing chain, wearing Pride Month T-shirts.

"American Apparel is showing bold leadership by being among just a few companies to include transgender people in its national ads," GLAAD President Herndon Graddick said in a statement. "The company’s statement that 'Gay is OK' will reach millions and send an important message in support of equality." King, 26, was the first transgender contestant on "Top Model," too. Do you think American Apparel is making a bold move toward equality by using her in their ads? Or is it just a gimmicky way to get attention?

+29

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Nilam 2012/06/15 22:03:12

Great

+36
geez people, when is society gonna grow up. why should anyone care about another persons preference? media has freely exposed sex, drugs, violence, and much much more and noone seems to have a problem with it, why all the fuss over gay? i personal dont enjoy being with someone of the same sex, but if someone else does, how is that even any of my business? i really dont see the big deal.........
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ChocoCake to Vitalani 2012/06/15 23:04:50

+2
Wait! Hold the phuck up! That's a man?!?!?!?! Omg!!! Simply gorgeous! He/She could've fooled me!!! And before anyone says anything "smart" I wouldn't know any of this because I was working and going to school so no time for tv. But wow, she's a beaut!

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Kyle 2012/06/15 20:54:49

Great

+3
Whoa, whoa wait a minute. That's a guy!? Alright give me a second to get over these feelings.

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MissJo to Kyle 2012/06/15 21:38:40

+5
No, she's not a guy, she's a woman. She was born male, but that doesn't make her a guy... gender identity is in the head, not in the pants.

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Kyle to MissJo 2012/06/15 21:44:42 (edited)

+3
Funny, I always thought gender identity was in your genes.

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MissJo to Kyle 2012/06/16 01:24:40

+1
No, your birth sex is in your genes. Sex =/= gender.

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Kyle to MissJo 2012/06/17 01:45:50

Dang it that was supposed to be taken as a joke, stop being so serious all the time! Honestly I don't care what gender a person identifies themself because as long as they're happy with who they are that doesn't really matter.

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brunyon to MissJo 2012/06/15 22:15:47

really because science would like to have a word with you. pretty sure having a dick denotes manhood

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MissJo to brunyon 2012/06/15 23:43:52 (edited)

+3
Having a dick means that you're biologically male and that you have XY chromosomes while manhood and man are gender identities and are cultural and psychological concepts.

I've had this talk with science and we've cleared it up. Maybe you need to go back and have another chitchat. (:

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Kyle to brunyon 2012/06/17 01:09:39

You'd be surprised how many websites there are out there that prove that last sentence wrong.

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Fxckiin Brii 2012/06/15 20:52:32

Gimmicky

+4
Gays vs transgendered.. Accepting your sexuality vs changing your looks to look like something you are not(the opposite sex..) Now, Why should that be praised ? And at that, why should they be deemed equal to one another?

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Vitalani to Fxckiin... 2012/06/15 20:57:32

+10
Because they are PEOPLE. All good people are equal. There is nothing wrong with anyone who falls under the LGBTQ blanket.

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FatherL... to Vitalani 2012/06/15 21:35:19

+3
Sure. But people are allowed to have their opinions to, which means they have the right to not likely other peoples lifestyles and express it too. And being equal does not equate to praising it. I believe people should have the right to consume anything they choose as free people, but I wouldnt praise a person consuming drugs. Being LGBTQ is not illegal. But, whether they want to admit it or not, it is a mental (biological) disorder, and I dont think that deserves praising. Our biological purpose is reproduction, which means men and women together. I have no problem with LGBT people, they have the right to live any way they wish, but lets face the facts.

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Vitalani to FatherL... 2012/06/15 21:44:17

Of course everyone has a right to their opinions. And everyone has the right to question the views of others. did you not notice she asked a question? I simply responded.

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darazan to FatherL... 2012/06/15 22:07:52

It hasn't been considered a mental disorder for quite a long time, because it simply isn't. While the reproductive system's main purpose is for reproduction, that doesn't mean that every person's purpose in life is to reproduce. Monks who were celibate didn't get with women, but no one would say that there was something mentally wrong with them, even if you don't believe in the religion they follow.

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FatherL... to darazan 2012/06/15 22:40:25

+2
Its not considered a mental disorder because of politics, not actual medical sciences. It has been political correctness that drove people to think it is wrong to criticize the gay lifestyle. A monks choose not to have sex with anyone for spiritual purposes, that is completely different. Gay people have a chemical alteration in their body that makes them attracted to the same sex. It is a disorder. I am not saying they are bad, or that they need treatment (or that there is even a treatment for it), but it is a unnatural chemical alteration in their minds that makes them gay.

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Fxckiin... to Vitalani 2012/06/15 21:41:54

At what point did I state or imply that there was anything wrong with them?

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Vitalani to Fxckiin... 2012/06/15 21:43:18

Your implication was dreadfully obvious hun.

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Fxckiin... to Vitalani 2012/06/15 21:52:03

LOL at misinterpretations.. I've a number of gay friends and my favorite high school teacher is a lesbian..

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Vitalani to Fxckiin... 2012/06/15 22:00:28

I see.

"Why should that be praised ? And at that, why should they be deemed equal to one another?" That seemed a tad condemning.

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Fxckiin... to Vitalani 2012/06/15 22:19:56

"Why should changing yourself into something you are not be praised?"
"And at that, why should they(gays accepting their sexuality and transgendered striving to be something they are not" be deemed equal to one another?"

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Vitalani to Fxckiin... 2012/06/15 23:41:19

I think you misunderstand why it is people "praise" the LGBTQ community. For SO long anything who fell under that category was persecuted, looked down upon, and judged. So, to counter that, some praise them.

Why WOULDN'T they be seen as equal??

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Fxckiin... to Vitalani 2012/06/16 03:40:52

Because of the fact that gays aren't changing who they are. They are embracing it and being gay and open about it..
I have not even a problem with transgendered people. I just don't feel like they are coming from the same place as gays nor do I feel that their situations and the ways that they handle it are equal to on another.

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Vitalani to Fxckiin... 2012/06/16 07:19:47

I do. But perhaps I am biased.

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FatherL... to Vitalani 2012/06/15 22:41:13

+1
There is a BIG DIFFERENCE between accepting and praising.

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Vitalani to FatherL... 2012/06/15 23:41:58

Praising them is simply to counter the persecution they have faced, and still face.

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rylie_love to Fxckiin... 2012/06/15 22:12:25

+5
lol @ using the defense: "I've a number of gay friends"

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Fxckiin... to Fxckiin... 2012/06/15 21:43:23

+1
Would it be the same for a black family using bleaching cream to be white?

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rylie_love to Fxckiin... 2012/06/15 22:13:25

+3
no, this is silly... you should delete this comment. thats like saying gay people shouldn't get married cause its the same thing as someone trying to marry their dog.

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Fxckiin... to rylie_love 2012/06/15 22:20:57

Gay marriage is besides the point. And that analogy was ridiculous in itself. I'm referring to transgendered people..

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rylie_love to Fxckiin... 2012/06/15 22:23:10

+1
so why are you takling about black people bleaching themselves white? i don't see the relavence

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Fxckiin... to rylie_love 2012/06/15 22:24:52

+1
Because they are striving to change the reality of what they are into something they are not.

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rylie_love to Fxckiin... 2012/06/15 22:39:45

ok then lets just look at it this way. # of people who are transsexual vs. # of people who are black bleaching themselves white. thats your difference.

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Fxckiin... to rylie_love 2012/06/16 08:13:14

What would it matter the number of people? That's completely relevant how? lol
& They've had shows about it on television of black people doing it soo..

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darazan to Fxckiin... 2012/06/15 22:08:58

Just an observation for clarity's sake: It was probably that part where you asked why they should be considered equal.

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Fxckiin... to Vitalani 2012/06/15 21:47:02

+1
& I had meant, Accepting your sexuality being equal to disliking your gender and changing it..

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Vitalani to Fxckiin... 2012/06/16 07:22:04

You don't, and will never understand. Disliking your gender is one thing, being trapped in it is another. Imagine waking up tomorrow as a boy, and wishing your could be female(or vice versa). That is how trans men and women feel their entire lives until they get to do something about it.

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Anonymo... to Fxckiin... 2012/06/15 21:12:13

+2
I have to agree with this. I see nothing wrong with loving whomever, but I draw a line at men acting like or trying to turn themselves into a woman. If you're a man, don't act like a woman.

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darazan to Anonymo... 2012/06/15 22:11:36

Some people born male just feel like they are female and were meant to be such. To act otherwise would be counter to who they are, and getting a sex change operation simply shows on the outside how they've always felt on the inside. It's not an operation or procedure that happens overnight, and it's a decision that takes years.

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Anonymo... to darazan 2012/06/15 22:15:22

+2
They feel they are female, but they're not. But I digress, as long as they don't flaunt the fact they used to be a man and they look good, I don't really has a problem. It's if you get someone who obviously used to be a man that it looks horrible, like a fat person in tight clothes...

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LucidLoon to Anonymo... 2012/06/15 22:13:05

+1
What about transgendered women who are only attracted to women? This is a more complex topic than most people give it credit.

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