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Sure, many will not take it seriously or brush it off as ploy for publicity because the person involved is best known to younger generations for being part of the whole unfortunate Kardashian thing, but Diane Sawyer’s interview of Bruce Jenner that’s airing on ABC tonight is an important moment in this country’s history. A man who on and off for four decades has been in the spotlight as the epitome of American masculinity — first as an Olympic hero, more recently for being the male head/father figure of a famous family — is speaking out at length about the gender identity struggles he’s endured over the course of his life. Bruce Jenner is, in effect, coming out as a woman tonight on national television.
“Yes, for all intents and purposes, I’m a woman,” Jenner told Sawyer after taking his hair out of a ponytail to let it down. He explained that he has the “soul of a female” and that his “brain is much more female than it is male.”
In a statement issued tonight, GLAAD CEO Sarah Kate Ellis said the following: “Today, millions of people learned that someone they know is transgender…By sharing this story, Bruce Jenner has shined a light on what it means to be transgender and live authentically in the face of unimaginable public scrutiny. Though Jenner’s journey is one that is deeply personal, it is also one that will impact and inspire countless people around the world.”
Later in the interview, Jenner made what some may view as an even more shocking revelation: that he’s a Republican. However, this part of Jenner’s life has been known for some time.
