Once silent runway strutters, trans models come out in the open
MANILA, Philippines — Crimsoña Kaiser kept her life story a secret when she was modeling in Europe in the 80s out of fear that she would not get hired to walk the runway for top fashion brands.
“I could never disclose my identity because a lot of the bookers did not want to sell you as a trans woman because they would not know what the client would perceive you to be,” Kaiser told Philstar.com over the weekend.
From 1982 until she retired from modeling in 1991, her identity was never revealed until she returned to Guam when her truth was finally told: She was a trans trailblazer as one of the first trans Asian models to ever set foot in the global fashion scene.
Returning home to the Philippines, some 30 years after her retirement, Kaiser, now 67, said the progress made for the queer sector has been “phenomenal.”
Looking back at her career, she said she could have never worked here as a model in the 80s and the 90s. “Not everybody in the Philippines is open-minded … I was always ridiculed. I would go out, and hear, ‘Oh, bakla ‘yan.’”
But doors have now been opened for Filipino trans women models and other trans women models from Asia: With the launch of Slay Model Management’s Asia office in Manila, they can proudly strut down the runway while wearing their truths.
Story of resilience
Speaking at the launch of the agency’s Manila office in Taguig over the weekend, Slay founder Cece Asuncion said this would not have been possible even five years ago as he recalled difficulties even in finding sponsors.
“In the beginning of opening Slay, there were no opportunities for trans models. A lot of education had to happen, many awkward conversations, inter-community discourse, and the daily urge to school people on social media that trans is beautiful,” Asuncion said.
He continued: “However, our story is not one of strife or victimhood, it is one of resilience, success and the importance of vigilance.”
Slay bills itself as the world’s first trans exclusive model agency and says that its talents have worked with many brands including Vogue Paris, Vogue Scandinavia, Elle France, Macy’s, Uber and Tinder.
Asuncion said he wants to ride on the Asian wave in Hollywood, especially with the success of "Everything, Everywhere, All at Once" actors Michelle Yeoh, Ke Huy Quan and Stephanie Hsu.
“This increased visibility for Asian talents, including models, is an opportunity that I don’t want to miss,” Asuncion said.
But he stressed that trans-ness is not just a trend to ride on.
"Trans people have always been around. Trans-ness is not a trend, everyone! Trans people have been around for all of these years. So don’t erase them. Don’t disrespect them," he said.
Trans visibility
Slay’s Asia office is co-directed by Niccolo Cosme, also creative director of digital marketing and creative agency Howwwl Digital, and Ben Bernabe, executive director of health and human rights organization The Red Whistle.
“The success of Slay Model Management is a concrete example that trans visibility matters; trans representation matters,” Bernabe said. “Trans models, just like any model of any gender identity, just want to work and give their best at what they do and we will do our best to find them clients who will see them as the beautiful persons that they are.”
For Nella Johnson, one of the 24 models presented during the launch, trans representation is especially important during this time when legislation designed to protect queer people from discrimination continues to be stalled in the Philippine Congress.
“At the end of the day, we are all human beings. We deserve to be protected. We are human. And we are someone’s family’s sister,” Johnson said.
Philippine laws do not allow trans people to recognize their identities in official documents. Even the proposed law that seeks to penalize discrimination on the basis of sex, sexual orientation, gender identity and expression (SOGIE) does not have such a provision.
‘Breakthrough’
Johnson said she hopes that Slay’s arrival in Asia via the Philippines can serve as an eye-opener. “There are still a lot of things that are lacking in the Philippines, so Slay Models Search Asia is a great representation for our country to see what we can do and that we are all valid,” she said.
Kaiser, the trans model who worked during the 80s in Europe, said she also hopes that the launch of Slay in Asia will open the eyes and minds of people as she called it a “breakthrough.”
“In the Philippines, being a Slay model is a breakthrough. It’s a breakthrough. It is something to look upon in a very positive way. And I think it’ll open the doors and open the minds of people that we are not only an agency but we are a special agency,” she said.
Asked if in the future, it will be possible to see cisgender and transgender models alongside each other, Slay’s founder, Asuncion, said: “That’s up to you.”
“Once we make change and true equality happen, we will see cisgender and transgender people share the stage.”
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