Like Anita Hill's historic trial, and Massachusetts' game-changing case legalizing gay marriage, Caitlyn Jenner's debut on the cover of Vanity Fair is a momentous one for the transgender community. Harvard Business Historian, Nancy Koehn joined Jim Braude and Margery Eagan to discuss the corporate implications of Jenner's transition from 'breakfast of champions' to champion of transgender rights.
Koehn is quick to draw attention to the enormous attention being paid to the look and feel of Caitlyn Jenner's outfits. "She looks anything but typical" on the cover of Vanity Fair, and not just because she's one of very few women over sixty to earn the honor. There is no doubt Jenner is carrying forward the Kardashain brand, focusing on the glamour of the shoot, as opposed to the outright substance of an emotional and physical transition, but that shouldn't surprise us, Koehn says. "Here's someone opening up, saying I'm finally being true to myself," it makes sense that she would do it on the terms and in the style she has established with her family. It is, in fact, as carefully orchestrated as any of the other Kardashian events and specials.
"The world is changing rapidly," Koehn emphasizes, but it's changing for the better. Many corporations, even ones as conservative as Walmart, have begun to embrace the LGBT language of equality. It's just good business sense. "It's where we're going as a cultural community."
The magnitude of Jenner's transition is amplified by the dramatic transition from hyper masculine to extreme feminine. From his extraordinary athleticism to Tuesday's Kardashain cover, "Caitlyn is here for the world on her terms," Koehn says."What's so important about this is increasing awareness of the transgendered experience," Koehn points out. It's part of a much larger, and longer, story.
