Motherhood has no gender. And Mother's Day is the best opportunity to recognise the growing profile of LGBT parents through their personal stories. LGBTs are being recognised as the third gender of the society, but they are still fighting against all the odds.
Also read: Happy Mother's Day 2017: 10 most influential celebrity mothers from Hollywood
Recently, an ad campaign by Vicks put an effort to give us the peek into our thought process — a transgender mom and her daughter. This ad is the proof how there can be a beautiful bond between a mother and a child, no matter what their gender is. Let's take a look at these mothers who have broken the gender stereotypes of our society with their unconditional love.
- A recent Vicks advert, released online on March 31, brings up the story of Indian transgender mother Gauri and her daughter. Gauri, a 37-year-old Mumbai-based transgender woman and social activist, adopted Gayatri when she was six years old. Gayatri's mother, a sex worker, and Gauri's friend had died of AIDS. Since then, Gauri is raising Gayatri as her own daughter while going against all odds of the society. The video has garnered more than 9 million views on YouTube.
- Following Vicks, Dove (a Procter & Gamble brand) also featured a transgender mum named Shea in their latest advert. Shea is just one of the mums involved and is seen caring for her newborn son alongside her partner. In the advertisement, Shea explains the way people react when they hear that she is a mother. But she always takes it in a positive way and replies back, "Yep, we're both going to be mums."
- Another ad campaign by the HRC Foundation brought up the story of Ashley Swartz, who had always felt like a girl in childhood even though she was assigned male at birth. Following the murder of a fellow transgender, Ashley started fearing about her true identity, and even had panic attacks. Finally, after a life that included marriage and the birth of two children, Ashley felt comfortable enough to live as who she really was. In the ad, she says, "I believe our communities are strongest when we work together. So let's work together to strengthen the state we love." She now works as an activist to strengthen the future of their community.
- A mother and daughter duo from Detroit, who are going through transitions, also opened up about their journey. According to USA Today, Corey Maison, 15, who was born as a boy, now identifies himself as a girl. Her mother Erica was very supportive and was also battling with gender identity. Erica was transformed to male and is now named as Eric. The mother- daughter duo has documented their journey through Instagram.
