Janet Mock Is The Role Model We Need In 2017

Janet Mock is the role model we need in 2017. The thirty-four-year-old is redefining what it means to be trans through her efforts across multi-media disciplines, showing that your gender does not need to equal your identity.

Mock worked as a journalist for years, and served as the pop culture editor for People Magazine when she decided to publicly come out as trans in 2011 in a now-famous Marie Claire article.

Since coming out, Mock has worked feverishly to change minds about what it means to be trans. Shortly after the Marie Claire piece, Mock launched the #GirlsLikeUs social media campaign to create a space online “by and for trans women.” She then released her first novel “Redefining Realness,” which serves as an account of her teenage transition, and how she realigned her definition of what constitutes being fully realized as a person. Her confident memoir paints a picture of hope for trans youth despite being frank about the hard road many trans people face in an ever-changing political landscape.

Now, Mock has released her second book, “Surpassing Certainty,” which chronicles her journey toward being a confident role model. The new, daring memoir follows Mock throughout her twenties, focusing on coming of age in a post 9/11 world, her experience in her first marriage and climbing the media ladder in New York City.

Mock’s efforts push to change the way we regard trans people, but also show that we are all so much more than one aspect of our complex identities.