Do beauty pageants for gay men and transgendered women have an impact on discrimination?

Jamie

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Miss Beauty benefits leads the way on equality
Nyein Ei Ei Htwe
Myanmar Times
Sunday, 26 January 2014

The hall sparkled with Western-style decorations, matching the smartly dressed guests who also wore glittering smiles.

This was the Miss Beauty Concert 2014, a benefit for HIV-affected people held at Oriental House Restaurant in Mandalay on January 17. In attendence were make-up artists, designers, doctors and local LGBT rights leaders.

Though it was not the first time the concert was held in Mandalay, a buzz surrounded the event since it followed on a year of numerous infamous and violent incidents wherein gay people were arrested and harassed by local police.

Aung Myo Min, director of the rights organization Equality Myanmar, said that holding the concerts for gays can help lessen the discrimination of the LGBT community, but that activists needed to think about protection and fairness for gays in all parts of the country.

“The more such concerts are hosted, the more people will see LGBT people and have a chance to accept their identity. But we can’t focus hold events that focus on one group. We have to think for all gays,” Aung Myo Min said.

In 2013, Mandalay was the worst city in Myanmar for discrimination of gays. Still, the concert wasn’t meant to challenge the government, he continued.

“We just want to show the ability of our gay people, but without challenging the law. We want gays to be recognized and gays want also to work for the benefit of the peole. A focus only on their beauty is not enough,” Aung Myo Min said.

Participants in the concert said they support gay right, and they want to be valued by other people. They also stressed that they need dignity in their daily lives.

Eaint Lay, representative for LGBT Rights of Myanmar in ASEAN from 2010 to 2012 and a winner of many gay beauty pageants, also said such events contributed to a positive image of the community.

“These events don’t show just the beauty of gays but also that they can stand in front of people like other men and women. The concerts are also tests of general knowledge and their skills as members of society,” said Eaint Lay, who won the crowns of Best Activist, Miss Popular and Miss Human Rights in 2013 pageants in Mandalay.

He said also said that all gays need to work together. “As our town faced more cases of discrimination and more rights events have been held, more gays are coming out to support.”

Though Eaint Lay asked the attendees of the event to stay peaceful, noisy crowds threatened to turn the scene ugly. In the end, though, the well-prepared costumes of each contestant made for an attractive and interesting event.

Famous fashion designer Ko Myo Min Soe praised the event as a sign of progress.

“Some people are still concerned about gay arrests in Mandalay, but we can say it is more open for gays now by seeing that such concerts are permitted. There should be more events that involve gays from all fields – make-up artists, designers, and nat (spirit players),” Ko Myo Min Soe said.

Soe, a former Miss of 2013’s Red Ribbon Contest said events like this can build unity and confidence among the gay community, but they’ll never see success if other organizations don’t help them.

“Mandalay is a district comparable to Yangon, but now gays here, through the help of the media, are seen more as a normal part of society, and they can ask for their rights. But if there is no standard, no regulations, we can’t think of doing this,” Soe said.

Mummy King provided the flowers for the ceremonies and organized the Miss Beauty Concert 2014 to help HIV patients in Mandalay. In total, the event gathered K2 million.

“I hope this concert is not just for beauty but brings for a discussion of health and prevention,” Mummy King said.

Contestant Myat Moe Theint won the Miss title, and Ju Juu San and Nang Htet Htet Moon were runners up. The prizes were K3, K2 and K1 lakh and round-trip air tickets to Bangkok.

http://www.mmtimes.com/index.php/lifestyle/9384-beauty-contest-benefits-hiv-patients-asserts-lgbt-rights.html