Laverne Cox Urges Fans To See More Than Caitlyn Jenner’s Outer Beauty

Laverne Cox is thrilled by the support Caitylin Jenner is receiving after revealing herself for the first time on the cover of Vanity Fair—but Cox also wants to make sure the public focuses on more than just the outer appearance of transgender people, she said in a post on her Tumblr page. While Jenner’s beauty and poise in the cover photo are inspiring and important to the transgender community, the most beautiful thing about Jenner isn’t on the outside, said Cox, a transgender activist who stars on the Netflix series Orange is the New Black. “Yes, Caitlyn looks amazing and is beautiful but what I think is most beautiful about her is her heart and soul, the ways she has allowed the world into her vulnerabilities,” Cox wrote on her Tumblr. Cox added that Jenner’s cover also highlights the need for more diversity in media so that what is considered beautiful doesn’t solely align with “cisnormative beauty standards.” And Cox called on those in the transgender community to continue to “lift up” the stories of those who don’t have the money and access she and Jenner have, to reflect the diversity of experiences among transgender people. “I hope, as I know Caitlyn does, that the love she is receiving can translate into changing hearts and minds about who all trans people are as well as shifting public policies to fully support the lives and well being of all of us,” Cox wrote.