Indya Moore Is the First Trans Person on the Cover of Elle Magazine
Indya Moore is breaking barriers
Photo: Wikimedia/Peabody Awards
Indya Moore is breaking barriers. She has faced a number of challenges throughout her life, and yet through each battle, she has showed up, taken up space, and stayed true to who she is. Ten years ago, Moore left home because her Puerto Rican mother and Carribean father did not accept her as her true self, and today she’s made history as the first trans person to ever be on the cover of Elle magazine.
The star of FX’s Pose said eloquently on Instagram that being on the June cover signified much more for an entire community of trans and people of color. She also said that as the June cover girl, the month is also significant to the LGBTQIA community.
“This is an immense honor,” Moore said. “I’m still taking it in. It’s extremely overwhelming. I appreciate you for leaning into me, knowing the future I stand for and by covering me for June, acknowledging the way I utilize my platform to uphold those values and this vision. It’s so revolutionary to have someone like me be your cover star. Especially as June approaches I’m thinking about the Stone Wall anniversary and how many black and brown queer people have died so queerness and gender variant/trans experiences can be humanized. We have come so far and I am so thankful that something about me or my community opened your eyes to us in the ways it has that resulted in my feature. There is still more work to do and every day, and in nearly every conversation I hold I am thinking about ways to access people who are not systemically marginalized to inform them enough so that the burden doesn’t always fall on marginalized black brown queer and gender variant peoples backs to free ourselves from chains we did not create. We still have a long way to go.”
While Moore discusses the difficultness of living in foster care for years after leaving her home, it seems she has made amends somewhat with her mother. Moore sent her this message on Mother’s Day.
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“Thank you, mom, for trying, doing, surviving, healing, creating,” Moore said on Instagram. “You did what you can and in your best power, you worked against the world the best that you could and understood how to raise our family. And even though the pictures don’t look the same anymore, and have changed over the years I’m still so grateful to even have photos to look at, memories that were Beautiful and an undying faith that God is pleased with my mother. Thank you so very much.”
Congrats on the cover Indya! History was definitely made.
