Miss Venezuela and the Gender Identity Debate

Last week, at a press conference held by the Miss Venezuela organization, Osmel Sousa addressed the controversy stirred up by some people after Miss Canada accepted a transgender contestant. He said it would be disrespectful to allow transgender women to take part in Miss Venezuela, and that the Venezuelan people would not accept transgender contestants in the pageant, either now or for a long time.

Osmel Sousa said that transgender women should compete with other transgender women: “We respect them, but we don’t share that view.” In the same context he said Venezuela is not ready for Canada’s decision: “We respect it, but I don’t think it will happen here.”

After the press conference, a Globovisión journalist asked him why he thought the Venezuelan people were not ready for this, and he answered that this is a Catholic, Christian people who believe everything has its place, where the dignity of women is respected, and that it would be disrespectful to Venezuelan women to make them compete with a transgender woman.

He added that ordinary Venezuelans would not look kindly on transgender contestants in Miss Venezuela: it would be like women who had become men taking part in Mister Venezuela; they have their own contests, said the beauty czar, after reiterating that he deeply respects everyone’s sexual inclinations.

As some say, simplicity is sometimes full of wisdom. And the Venezuelan people, in their simplicity, understand perfectly one of the fundamental truths of life and nature: a man, with XY chromosomes, is born a man, and a woman, with XX chromosomes, is born a woman. Nature itself made them different, with their respective sexual organs, so that they could unite and conceive and raise the wonder of a child. That is why here in Venezuela, a simple and wise people, you see so many children and young people.

Because Venezuelans understand perfectly the complementarity between a man and a woman. That is why we are a country of young people! A country of hope! And it is precisely those children and young people, who are our hope, whom we must respect and set an example for! So Osmel Sousa, with his position, is also respecting Venezuelan families, children and young people. And I congratulate him on his clear position and his courageous statements.

And I dare to tell Mr. Osmel Sousa that we Venezuelans are not ready for this now, and never will be, because the vast majority of us know that what is natural and normal is to be a man because you were born a man, or a woman because you were born a woman, and that each man marries his wife, because that is what is natural. Anyone who wants to do something different is of course respected, but should keep it private and not try to impose it on society, setting a bad example for children and young people.

So I believe that in Venezuela, anyone (whether the director of a beauty pageant, a legislator, a lawyer, a politician, whoever…) who does not understand this and do everything possible to see that it is always respected has no future of success in this country.

Long live Miss Venezuela! I am sure the future holds very good things for this institution (even more than it has already had). If only all leaders had the courage of Osmel Sousa, who explained perfectly how everything has its place: Miss Venezuela, Miss World and Miss Universe for women; Mister Venezuela, Mister World and Mister Universe for men; and a transgender pageant for those who want to organize it and take part in it.

That is the wisest, the most natural and undoubtedly the most exemplary course for a simple and good people, who are owed Respect and also a great deal of EXAMPLE.