- Charlotte Goodyear was chosen to walk the runway donning Katie Clarke’s collection and became the first ever openly transgender model at Dunedin’s iD Fashion Week.
- While she is now known for her remarkable rise in the fashion industry, Goodyear, a shy and private young woman, shared her humble journey in coming out to her family and becoming eventually a model.
- While did not want to impose her beliefs on other people, she said she just wanted to be able to live as her genuine self.
According to TVNZ’s transgender news posted on May 4, a transgender model is making waves in the fashion scene in New Zealand. While she looked like any other model on the runway, transgender woman and model Charlotte Goodyear had a very interesting and unique story.
Coming out
While she is now known for her remarkable rise in the fashion industry, Goodyear, a shy and private young woman, shared her humble journey in coming out to her family and becoming eventually a model.
In an interview, she said, “As a teenager I was so awkward and shy and cut off and like weird.” Her journey started with trying to hide her dream to transition to become a woman from her family. However, Elizabeth, her mother, was very supportive of her decision.
“I thought she was amazing what she’d been through, the courage, that’s a lot of courage, really brave I don’t know if I’d have that sort of courage,” Elizabeth remarked.
Modelling
Currently, Goodyear was chosen to walk the runway donning Katie Clarke’s collection and became the first ever openly transgender model at Dunedin’s iD Fashion Week. “It’s something to get used to, stripping down to your knickers in a room full of people and just feeling comfortable which is crazy for someone who is trans,” she said. “Because usually our bodies can be quite distressing so that was a huge moment for me feeling like I fit in.”
While she claim she’s not imposing her beliefs on other people, she said she just wanted to be able to live as her genuine self.
“I want people to see that I’m not afraid of what they think and I don’t want that to be a sassy pushy sort of thing,” she said. “I just want to show people that I’m myself and I’m here and I’m living my truth and I’m just going to do that”.
More details from Stuff website revealed that she transferred from all-boys high school when she was young.
“When I started my transition I thought that I was giving up any chances of fitting into society and having a conventionally successful life, which isn’t a decision anyone wants to make unless they don’t have a choice,” she shared. “Becoming my true-self has really given me the opportunity to be the best version of myself, and to have the confidence to put myself out there and try modelling among other things. And the reason that I have that confidence is that I know my truth, and I’m not ashamed of it.”
She worked hard to get her modelling gig, competing against models from New Zealand and a Chinese contingent.
“I live, function and thrive in society as a woman even though I started my life (simply put) living as a boy,” she said. “Gender is much more complex than having certain body parts or appearing a certain way. Computers work in binary, but it goes without saying that people are more complicated.”
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