Pose really changed the trans narrative entirely , before its premiere back in 2018 there was not such a show in which trans lives were not only the main characters but with a character development that went beyond prostitution.
The reason the series portrays with all its nuances the journey all trans characters go through, is because the executive director of the series happens to be a black trans woman [ Janet Mock] like the three main characters in which the whole series revolve around to mainly.
The show draws focus to all characters storylines , but especially to three characters; Blanca Evangelista, Elektra Abundance and Angel evangelista.
Blanca Evangelista played by Mj Rodriguez, is the lovable character that opens her own ballroom house called House Of Evangelista after having a fight with Elektra Abundance , the woman that introduced her to the scene after Blanca was kicked out of her house for coming out as trans.
Blanca's journey of facing HIV and trying to stablished a business while also being the mother figure of those who needed her , showed the character's strength and willingness to survive in the 80's in New York as part of a community that was hated upon [ continues to be hated upon , but in a smaller scale].
There is also Angel Evangelista played by Indya Moore , a young trans girl rescued from the street by Elektra Abundance that at first has to be a hooker to survive. Throughout Angel's character development , we get to see the struggles a trans woman go through finding true love and she also brings hope to woman as she goes on to purse her dreams as a model.
Angel is one of those characters that can resonate to many trans young woman even nowadays because she can be relatable on multiple levels , the way she is fetishized and how she constantly needs validation from others.
Last but not least there is Elektra Abundance played by Dominique Jackson , the power house character that at first glance seems cold-hearted and with no insecurities whatsoever.
But little by little in the course of the series , we get to see the vulnerability and her story from getting mistreated by her mother to getting rejected after undergoing her sex change.
I especially feel Identified with this character in particular, because she constantly feels the need to be strong and not let her feelings show. Elektra has the idea that if she shows her feelings, she automatically is giving someone the power to hurt her. She also comes back of every downfall she faces , like nothing happened.
Overall the importance of this show and these characters goes beyond representation, it also has helped to bring awareness around our community. It Humanized a community that continues to be mistreated , killed and ridiculed.
Off course there has been an exponential amount of progress within laws that has made our lives easier , but is also important to remember that bigotry is not something all of a sudden disappears.
Last year is further prove of that , as 2021 became the deadliest year for trans people with 47 murders that is majority were black or latin[ Rummler et Sosin, 2021] . And this is only statistics in the U.S.A.
Is key to enjoy our victories as a community no matter how small they are , but by still acknowledging that there is a long way to go.
Bibliography
Rummer,O. Sosin,K. [ 2021]. 2021 is now the deadliest year year on record for transgender people. https://19thnews.org/2021/11/2021-deadliest-year-record-transgender-people/
If you haven't seen this show , you can find the first 2 seasons in Netflix. Feel free to share and leave a comment down below.
Hope you enjoyed it !
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