Lea T. in French Vogue

[smc]

I am not one who typically pays any attention to what is happening in the world of high fashion, but a news story from last week caught my attention. The French edition of Vogue magazine has published a picture of a transgender model.

Her name is Lea T., and as you can see from the pictures below she is absolutely, stunningly beautiful. Apparently, she caused quite a buzz when she appeared last fall in Givenchy's campaign, along with nine GG models.

Lea T. is the transgender personal assistant and fit model of Givenchy designer Riccardo Tisci, and pictures labeled "Leo" (her given name) and "Lea" were published in the Italian edition of Vanity Fair last month. Those are the first two pictures, below; the third picture is the picture from Vogue, and the current buzz is about what it shows.

Here's what one blogger wrote: "Lea T.?s nude photo for French Vogue is sure to open the longtime discussion on sexuality once again. Whilst the magazine has done it primarily for marketing purposes, having a transsexual model showing both her female and male body parts is also a call for diversity."

Wouldn't it be a kicker if it was the fashion world, which is so responsible for ridiculously unattainable standards of beauty for women, helped make a major breakthrough for the acceptance of transgender people?

I must say again: the picture from Vogue is a thing of remarkable beauty.