The annual international competition, Mr Gay World, has announced policy changes that will allow for the inclusion of Trans men in the gay male pageant.
The organisers released a statement on the Mr Gay World website which read: “In an all-inclusive move, Mr. Gay World has amended its policy to encompass the male-identifying spectrum within the LGBTQ+ community. This policy will be passed globally to all licence holders and strict measures will be put in place to ensure compliance.
“Mr Gay World is a pageant and awareness-promoting competition for the upliftment and empowerment of gay men as a minority group. The competition is open to anyone who identifies as male, using him and his pronouns and who collectively identifies as male.
“The title winner would be crowned as Mr Gay World and it is for this reason that all entrants should identify in this way. Mr Gay World is passionate about the empowerment and upliftment of all members of the LGBTQ+ community and regularly contributes to fundraising events and awareness activities for causes within this vast and diverse community, but its primary focus is that of the gay and male-identifying demographic of society as a community that has been globally recognized as a vulnerable minority with specific needs and requirements to promote self-confidence, solidarity, and a sense of community.”
The policy change will be implemented internationally, as the organisation has license holders in countries all over the world.
One such license holder is in the UK where the first Trans finalist, Chiyo Gomes, made history by competing in Mr Gay England in 2020. Gomes faced considerable backlash by anti-Trans campaigners for entering the competition, but the organisers made the statement that they were “PROUD to welcome any gay man to compete for one of our national titles”.
Although Gomes did not win the title last year, it is clear that his entry into the competition has contributed to Mr Gay World policy changes to include Trans contestants.
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Back now after a two-year hiatus due to Covid-19, the Mr Gay World competition will be taking place online this year, with competitors for both 2020 and 2021 pre-recording their pieces. By the end of the pageant on October 30, two winners will be crowned for the twelfth and thirteen editions of the competition, with the entire event being live-streamed to YouTube.
The reigning Mr Gay World, Fran Alvarado from Spain, has been announced as the competition’s first judge. He, along with a panel, will be overseeing the competition which runs over four weekends from October 9-30.
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