Justice

Ruby Rose's Best Moments Challenging Gender Stereotypes

October 26th 2015

People are praising actress and model Ruby Rose for her opening, inclusive comments about gender fluidity at the MTV Europe Music Awards (EMAs) Sunday night when she welcomed “Ladies, gentlemen and everyone in between.”

RELATED: Ruby Rose's Story on Gender Identity Is Challenging Stereotypes

Rose, 29, prefers to use female pronouns 'she' or 'her', and as ATTN: has previously reported, she has made powerful statements about how society views and performs gender through a binary understanding of what it means to be male or female. The gender spectrum is complicated, she explains.

"Gender fluidity is not really feeling like you're at one end of the spectrum or the other," Rose said. "For the most part, I definitely don't identify as any gender. I'm not a guy; I don't really feel like a woman, but obviously I was born one. So, I'm somewhere in the middle, which -- in my perfect imagination -- is like having the best of both sexes. I have a lot of characteristics that would normally be present in a guy and then less that would be present in a woman. But then sometimes I'll put on a skirt -- like today."

Rose identifies as a lesbian and is engaged to Phoebe Dahl, the grand-daughter of well-known children's author, Roald Dahl.

Here is a look back at some of Rose’s influential statements about gender fluidity.

1. She starred in, wrote and produced a gender-fluid film.

In the semi-autobiographical short "Break Free," Rose sheds a feminine look for a more masculine one. She describes the video as one about “gender roles, Trans, and what it is like to have an identity that deviates from the status quo." It's been viewed more than 13 million times.

RELATED: Your Understanding of Gender Might be Wrong. Here's Why

2. She's spoken about transitioning.

The 29-year-old told Access Hollywood about her struggle as a young child. After watching a segment on Oprah about transition from a female to a man, she decided she wanted to be a boy.

“I had this jar that I would collect dollars, in fact it was probably cents, so I had like 19 cents to go towards this surgery that I didn’t really know a lot about,” Rose told Access Hollywood.

Screengrab from Ruby Rose's 'Break Free'Ruby Rose, Rubix Cube Enterprises - youtube.com

She decided not to, however, and when she was 15, she told Access Hollywood that she started to get “more into” her body and shave her head.

“I started to change the way that I dressed and walked, and realized that I didn’t want to transition,” she continued. “I just wanted to be more comfortable in my own skin."

RELATED: Here Are Ruby Rose's Amazing Words On Gender Fluidity

3. She launched a gender fluid clothing brand.

Scallywags is a clothing line in collaboration with Rose's fiancée, Dahl. The bold patterns and ensembles are described on the clothing line website:

“The Scallywags are all about doing what’s fun and feels right, and making people smile in the process. We aren’t afraid to speak up, but we make a statement without saying a word.”

Ruby Rose and Phoebe Dahl in "The Scallywags" gender fluid clothing lineThe Scallywags - scallywagsofficial.com

To check out the brand, click here.

RELATED: This Brave Individual Came Out As Trans in a Text to 2.4 Million People

4. She’s spoken out for other sexual orientations and gender identities.

According to the Huffington Post, after the success of "Break Free," Rose took the visibility of the video to make the following statement on her Facebook page:

“You know what needs to stop just as much as homophobia, bullying within the LGBT Community... A 'bisexual' isn't just greedy.. 'Pansexual' exists and isn't a cop out.. 'Straight' people can be gay huge advocates and blessings to the community... you can identify as trans without surgery, you can be gender fluid... in fact guess what... you can be whoever you are and like whoever you like and WE should spread the love and acceptance we constantly say we don't receive.”

Screengrab from Ruby Rose's 'Break Free'Ruby Rose, Rubix Cube Enterprises - youtube.com

5. She continues to raise awareness.

It can be hard to stand up for what you believe in—no matter who you are. Rose continues to raise awareness for people who might be struggling with gender identity.

"People are talking about gender fluidity more and more now," Rose told Elle. "Because once someone opens a door to something like that, people put their hands up and say, "That's me! That's my friend! That's my sister! That's my mom!"

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