Drag Race Star Valentina on Why She Might Transition ‘Slowly’

After coming out as trans in May, RuPaul's Drag Race "fan favorite" Valentina is opening up on why she will take her time transitioning into the beautiful butterfly she was destined to become.

via: Pink News

The drag performer publicly identified as a trans woman for the first time on her 34th birthday in May. At the time, she posted on Instagram: “I’ve felt pressure to come forward so I’ve decided and wanted to take today to declare myself as a transgender woman.”

Valentina was first seen on season nine of Drag Race, in 2017, before returning for All Stars 4 the following year and went on to host spin-off Drag Race México. In 2019, she identified as non-binary and said she had struggled with “suicidal thoughts” while questioning her gender identity.

Speaking to Spanish LGBTQ+ outlet Shangay recently, Valentina opened up about her transition, which she began to explore in earnest after the death of her father. “I used to identify as a non-binary person although I have always been a woman,” she said. “But I kept an image that my father could understand and respect.” Once he died, Valentina “felt ready to show all my femininity”.

She delayed starting hormone treatment because of her job on Drag Race México‘s opening season. “I didn’t want to see myself in another country, recording on a set in Spanish and going crazy about the effects they could have,” she said.

Having been on hormones now for 18 months, Valentina was at “a stage of metamorphosis in which I am building the woman of my dreams, but the butterfly hasn’t come out yet”.

She went on to say she going to transition “slowly [because] I feel it should be that way”, adding: “There is too much social pressure for you to be the person of your dreams overnight. I’m still a trans baby.

“We need more representation, especially from trans women. For example, for those who live in Latin America, who generally do not have the same privileges as me, we must continue to educate people.”

Earlier this year, she said she had “matured” enough for a return to All Stars after coming out as trans.