By Peter Berton
TORONTO – “No good deed goes unpunished,” as transsexual activist, model and actress Samantha Lauzon discovered when her effort to increase awareness of testicular and prostate cancer in the cis-gendered community generated a bucketful of hate mail.
After noticing what she considered an appalling failure to include the transgendered community in the #cockinasock online awareness campaign, Lauzon shot a “selfie” matching the others prominently displayed on social media networks. Like the participating heterosexual men, Lauzon is wearing nothing except a sock on her genitals.
“Being a trans-woman with a penis, I felt we were being marginalized by the mainstream by not being included in this campaign,” she told YNOT.com. “I saw the #cockinasock campaign and thought, ‘I, too, have a penis. Where is the awareness for trans [people]?’
“Minorities are so often left in the dark when it comes to such campaigns, and we all know the only real ‘cure’ for cancer is prevention and early detection,” she added.
Lauzon posted her photo on Facebook and Twitter. Although the image and the sentiment behind it generated many positive responses, she also found herself the target of spiteful, anti-trans posts and tweets.
“I didn’t realize allowing myself to be so vulnerable would open me up to such criticism,” she said. “My photo has been reported a dozen or so times to Facebook, and yet they haven’t taken it down.”
The image created enough controversy that Shannon Grooms posted an interview with Lauzon on BuzzFeed. Grooms’ report generated even more traffic to the photo … and even more negative comments.
As social-networking efforts go, Lauzon’s was successful, she said. Although the experience has been somewhat unpleasant, she doesn’t regret her action.
“I posted [the photo] hoping someone would respond saying, ‘Thank you. Because of you, I got tested.’ That’s exactly what happened,” she said. “I’ve received a tremendous amount of support — and more hate than I can care to admit.”
Nevertheless, “I think my Twitter feed and Facebook page speak volumes,” Lauzon said. “I’ve raised awareness for trans-women, and that’s what I set out to do.”
