- 22 hours ago
Dominique Jackson and Shalwah Evans have a beauty conversation during the Essence Festival of Culture Beauty Carnival.
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00:00Hey guys, I'm Shawwa Evans, Associate Beauty Editor here at Essence, and I am here at
00:09Beauty Carnival and super excited today because I am about to just embark on the most, one
00:16of the most important conversations I think that I'm going to have this week.
00:19I'm excited this woman is becoming such a legend in her own right.
00:24Without further ado, I'm just going to bring her in.
00:26I'm Ms. Dominique Jackson.
00:29Hello, hello.
00:31Hello, how are you?
00:33I'm so great.
00:35First of all, the colors in the background are amazing.
00:39I love the match with your top and the fish tank.
00:42It's beautiful.
00:44Thank you so much.
00:45Thank you so much.
00:49Someone very special to me has created this for me and it feels very relaxing.
00:54It feels very cool.
00:56So yeah.
00:57Nice, nice.
00:58Well, I want to just jump right on in because I have so many questions, just so much to
01:03talk about.
01:03There's been so much going on, but you know, we're on the Beauty Carnival stage, so I do
01:08really want to kick it off talking about beauty.
01:11Yes, Beauty Carnival.
01:13I'm glad you're a beauty girl like me, so you can relate.
01:18Yes.
01:19So just kind of dig it into, you know, fashion and beauty.
01:23They've always kind of served as an avenue for expression.
01:26I know, you know, just being on Pose, we got to see so much of what you do and what
01:33you bring and what you deliver with that beauty.
01:34Can you talk a little bit about how your self-expression has translated through your beauty, your regimens,
01:41your looks, like, yeah.
01:43Let us know all the teeth.
01:44Well, for me personally, in the beginning, I never felt like I was beautiful because
01:49I didn't have anyone that I could look up to, you know, to look on television, except
01:53when I would see, like, Jet Magazine and stuff like that.
01:56Yeah, I'm dating myself.
01:57Anyway, and so beauty for me was something that I did not see in myself.
02:03And when I started to look at magazines such as Essence and stuff like that, I realized
02:07that being a Black woman can be beautiful and it can, and it's not about that you're not
02:13beautiful.
02:13It's just that you have to learn to embrace it.
02:16And so that's what I had to learn.
02:17And working on Pose, so amazingly, I was at a point in my life where even though many people
02:24around me told me, oh, you're beautiful, you have to embrace it, I didn't really feel
02:28it because for me, it was because as my truth was not celebrated, my entire truth wasn't
02:35celebrated.
02:36So once I got onto Pose and I started to see the love and feel the love, and then I got into
02:42those garments, I realized that someone valued us enough to say, this is the love.
02:47This is what she's going to wear.
02:49And that also prompted me to feel like, look, girl, you have to now dress and feel the beauty
02:55that others see in you and see it within you yourself.
03:00I mean, that's something we talk about so much here at Essence, you know, because especially
03:08for the beauty editors, we're digging into these stories and we're looking at these things
03:12all the time.
03:13And one of the things that comes up constantly is this lack of diversity, right?
03:18In these brand campaigns and just, you know, across their companies, even down to who's
03:26making these decisions, who's in those boardrooms, who we see as the faces of these brands.
03:31And so I'm glad you said that because I want you to talk a little bit about, you know, being
03:35on Pose and how not only did that, you know, shed light on, you know, trans women, but trans
03:42women of color specifically and allowed us to see just, just, just a group of people that
03:49we typically don't see in certain spaces and what that means for the transgender community
03:55and what that can mean for diversity.
03:57Okay.
03:58You might have to break that up for me.
04:00That's a lot, right?
04:01So first, I guess, talk about, talking about what it means for the transgender community
04:06and specifically, um, transgender women of color.
04:09Well, I cannot speak for all trans women of color.
04:12I can only, I can speak for myself and through my expression, I hope that other women have
04:17similar stories.
04:18And then from the work that I've done, I do know working in nonprofit, especially working
04:23with Destination Tomorrow, um, I have been able to gather stories and the consensus is that
04:29we just want to see ourselves.
04:31We want to be celebrated just like anyone else, because in all actuality, when we would look
04:37in years before to, uh, magazines, when we would look to brands, these brands that we used
04:43ourselves, sometimes we couldn't even walk into the stores to buy them because we would be
04:47shamed, we would be ridiculed, but then they wouldn't have an issue sending us our money.
04:52You know, I mean, taking our money, you know, so for, for, as a trans woman, I even got to
04:59the point where I didn't want to deal with certain brands.
05:01I just felt like, look, if you don't see me, you, I'm just not with you.
05:06And it was seeing the Mac ad, um, in the village with, uh, RuPaul on it.
05:13And that was just like a, oh my gosh.
05:16So within a week I was in the Mac store and I felt like, look, they see me, you know,
05:24they see versions of me.
05:25They see me.
05:26So yes.
05:27And then I get into the store and there are people that are working there that are like,
05:30Hey girl, I saw the show last week, you know?
05:33So that makes you feel now, okay, I'm included.
05:37And that's all it is.
05:39That's beautiful.
05:40I love that.
05:40Um, and I actually want to talk about that because, you know, it's pride month.
05:44We're celebrating pride and we've started to see, and I think more specifically this
05:50year for obvious reasons that the brands are trying to go beyond just, you know, these
05:55campaigns and just words and really trying to support the LGBTQ community.
06:01Um, do you think that there is more that they could be doing or if there are things that
06:06they could be doing that there just aren't or that they're not, they just don't have the
06:09understanding of quite yet?
06:11I think a lot of it is understanding and maybe it could be to the market that they think are
06:19the ones that are really purchasing their products.
06:21You know, maybe they have not really done the research to realize where, or maybe they just
06:27don't care.
06:28We, we don't know.
06:29It's, it's all just, um, assumption, but, um, many times what has happened that has kind
06:36of, uh, and I'll be honest, has disgusted me is that during the pride month, everyone
06:42is ready to celebrate with us.
06:43The brands are there.
06:45You're everywhere, you know, flags are up.
06:48And then when June is finished, that is over.
06:51It's over.
06:52Yeah.
06:52You know, people are hired maybe for the pride month because they're doing some extra work
06:57at Macy's or something like that.
06:59Not to say that Macy's has done anything to us, you know, just as reference, you know,
07:03and then when that seasonal work is over, which includes pride month, we're not even
07:10seen.
07:10You can still go to some of the stores in New York city.
07:13And if you are not, what is considered possible, you may still not be allowed inside.
07:19Wow.
07:20It's interesting.
07:21You say that because we have those conversations.
07:24I think just my friends and I would definitely at essence where we talk about, you know,
07:29all years, black history, you know, it's black history year.
07:32Why is it black history month?
07:33Right.
07:33That's when everybody wants to reach out and that's when everyone wants to have these diversity
07:38panels and talk about inclusion.
07:40And then we're like, okay, so as soon as it turns March, are we done with black people?
07:46And so, you know, it's obviously the same thing that's happening with you guys.
07:51And here's where it crosses, right?
07:53As a black trans woman, I deal with this in February and I deal with it in June.
08:00Oh, right.
08:02Yeah.
08:04And go ahead.
08:06Oh, no, no, you go ahead.
08:07Cause I got another followup for that, but I want you, I want to let you finish.
08:11No.
08:11And then I was about to say for world AIDS day, then everyone knew.
08:16And then it's like, and then they're gone.
08:19So, yeah, I was going to say, what, um, can we all be doing as well?
08:25Cause we talk about these brands and, you know, we talk about the businesses, but we see
08:29right now that a lot of this movement is happening because the people took to the street.
08:34And so what is it that we can be doing that, you know, just from, you know, to your fellow
08:39brothers and sisters to open up that dialogue and to open up that space to the, to the trans
08:47community.
08:48Well, especially for the trans community of color, first people are going to have to
08:52humanize us.
08:53They're going to have to start.
08:54We're going to have to start people, our allies are going to have to start humanizing
08:58us to others in those conversations that you are having.
09:02It's not about, okay, we'll look good.
09:04If we bring this person in or that person in, it's about, look, let's do something for
09:10this marginalized community.
09:11Let's give them some hope and let's give them something to be able to feel like they
09:16have value.
09:17working on polls have, has given me such, such self value, such a self esteem to know
09:24that someone actually wants to advocate for me, you know, and someone wants to hear my
09:30voice, my story, you know, our voices, our stories.
09:34So it's about advocacy on, on each level.
09:38It's about saying to your bosses and the higher ups, look, let's try something new.
09:43Let's go with this, not because it's trending, but because these are human beings too.
09:48And they purchase our products.
09:50They read our magazines.
09:51They do, you know, yeah, now I have a story for you.
09:57So I saw you, I ran into you in New York.
10:03This was about, I want to say the first season of pose had just wrapped up and, you know, we
10:09were downtown Manhattan, like around Fulton street.
10:11And I just remember, I saw you and I had like this shock.
10:14I had this moment of like, you know, fandom.
10:17I was like, Oh my goodness, there's not many decks.
10:19And my friend's like, where?
10:21And you, you gave us like a nice, you know, smile.
10:24You were very warm, you know, we just waved.
10:27And, you know, it, it sparked a thought in me because when I think about in my own personal
10:33life, I do not have any trans women in my community.
10:38Like, you know, in my personal life, in my group of friends, in my, my family.
10:43And the fact that I was so excited to see you, this person that I don't personally know,
10:49you know, but you were a friend in my head from the show.
10:51Um, but we are friends, but you know, it really helped me in this understanding of how big
11:05representation really is, because I was so excited to see you this person that I don't
11:11know, but it was from seeing you on the show that I came to love you and love your character
11:17and, um, and to look into you more.
11:20I started researching everyone on the cast and I started learning things for real.
11:26You started realizing we were human.
11:29Yes.
11:30Yes.
11:30Yes.
11:31But I'll tell you this, right?
11:33Like for a lot of times we are prejudged.
11:37So it's, and I've had the experience of sitting on the train and watching an actual cis woman
11:44be, you know, bullied around and treated, you know, very disrespectfully because they
11:50thought she was trans and the guys were sitting right next to me and he's down there and they're,
11:56you know, throwing the verbiage, everything at this woman.
11:59And I'm sitting there and I'm fearful because I'm right next to them.
12:02So in my head, I'm going, I'm next.
12:04I don't know if I'm going to survive this.
12:06And the guy pats me on the leg.
12:08Like it was his okay to go, you see, you're a real woman.
12:13That kind of stuff isn't right.
12:15Turns out this woman was actually a woman and three months pregnant.
12:20Oh, wow.
12:21So I believe that in our societies, we don't realize that in sometimes trying to protect,
12:27especially our, our black men, we forget to realize that we're also teaching them a form
12:33of hatred when we take away from them, this ability to love openly.
12:38So now that hatred transforms onto us and we're being murdered at a rate that I can't even,
12:46it, it's just disheartening.
12:48Yeah.
12:49And you're very vocal, you know, and you've been like an extremely vocal advocate and,
12:56you know, even on your social media, you've been sharing like very sincerely, uh, parts
13:01of your story.
13:02Are you ever worried or concerned or fearful that if you give too much of yourself, that
13:08you become too vulnerable?
13:11Um, every day of my life, I look out my windows and I think to myself, thank God I'm here.
13:17Um, I see the violence, the brutality against my brothers and sisters.
13:24It, it saddens me.
13:26It discourages me.
13:27And then it takes me back to that place of the violence and brutality that I had to endure
13:31the stuff that I had to suffer.
13:33And, you know, all we truly want to do is just live our lives.
13:43If you've ever really been around people from the LGBTQIA plus community, a lot of times
13:48we are just having fun, right?
13:50We just want to feel like we are a part of a society that we contribute so much to.
13:57So, yeah, and, and to exist without fear and without shame, um, that's also difficult because
14:11there are always times where you may be in conversation.
14:13I have been in conversation with someone and then they realize, oh my gosh, I'm trans.
14:19And then everything goes left, you know, for no apparent reason.
14:24Again, it comes back to education.
14:27So every day of my life that I put up those posts and everything, yes, I do have the fear,
14:32but I'm not going to back down because backing down just, you know, gives people that okay
14:38to continue to step on you, to continue to oppress you.
14:43Um, for quite a while, people would make comments on some of my, uh, posts that were in the negative
14:50and I would ignore them because I said to myself, you know what, I'm being the bigger person,
14:57but now I have come to a point where I'm seeing my sisters being beaten while we're in the
15:02middle of a black lives matter protest where my sisters are still being murdered in the
15:08middle of that protest.
15:09I realized that silence is not going to get us anywhere.
15:12So I have to clap back.
15:14So I have security.
15:15Um, I, I kind of want to bring that back to this, this idea of inclusion and representation,
15:25because I think that's such a huge part of it, right?
15:28In the learning and the being able to see people, right?
15:32Because when we see different people in certain settings, then we've been, then seeing them
15:39everywhere begins to become normal, right?
15:41To normalize that present and to not look at people as other.
15:47And, um, that's why I was saying, when I saw you, I was so excited and it was, it was,
15:52it brought to mind this idea for me that, wow, you know, that's, that goes to show how big
15:58representation really is because I'm in my late thirties, you know, and I learned something.
16:04Oh, thank you.
16:05You know, I try, I try, you know, but I was able to learn something and it was
16:11because, you know, the, the, the, the creators of the show said, no, we are going to put these
16:17women in the forefront of this story and the forefront of this show.
16:21And we're going to say, no, this is not, this shouldn't be an odd thing, you know?
16:27Um, and, and that you guys have that representation.
16:30Let's look at, uh, African women in general, uh, African women that are of darker skin,
16:36built differently.
16:38And in Europe, these women were being celebrated at one point in time, but in the U S if you
16:44were a dark woman, it was like nothing.
16:46When Alec Wack came on the runways, it was a shock, not to, to, in the sense of, oh my
16:56gosh, what is she doing there?
16:57But in the sense of weight, someone sees me, someone sees this skin.
17:02And they see the cheekbones and they're not looking at it as other, but they're looking
17:07at it as beautiful.
17:08At one point in time, I used to say, people tell, to say to people, the only reason you
17:13think I'm beautiful is because I'm so ugly that you think I'm exotic, you know?
17:17And that was the kind of friend mind that I was shaped from because when I, again, when
17:22we look through magazines for many years, we don't see ourselves.
17:26We don't, you don't see that person.
17:28And they're not telling you that it's okay to wear braids, you know, it's something that
17:33we have to claim at times.
17:36Right.
17:37And now I want to take a little bit of a turn because speaking of claiming, I want you to
17:43claim this.
17:44Now, you know, there's a lot of buzz going on on social media about you being the next
17:50storm in the next X-Men production.
17:53Um, I mean, what do you think about that and what does that say about the visibility
17:58of trans women in Hollywood?
18:01Well, first off, I'm like to all those people out there who believe in me like that.
18:07I thank you.
18:07I thank you.
18:08I thank you from the bottom of my heart.
18:10The X-Men represented so much to a group of us when we were homeless living in like one
18:19apartment, like 10 deep, and we would sit and watch the Phoenix saga and we would allocate
18:25like characters to each person.
18:27And of course I was stormed.
18:29And looking at, you know, every, every time I watched the X-Men, I looked at them as like
18:36they were LGBTQ I a plus because society didn't see them, but yet they were still contributing
18:42to society, still saving people, you know, doing things.
18:46And I wanted to be that kind of person that, you know, would be able to save people, even
18:51though they hated me, you know?
18:54And so when this came about, it's just the idea that people feel this.
18:59It brought me so much joy.
19:00It made me feel really human.
19:03It really made me feel like, you know, I was somebody that I have value that I've been
19:10acknowledged.
19:10I mean, it's not even about the part.
19:13It's just about the fact that so many people, um, and are rallying for something and they're
19:19not using my trans identity as something to hold me back.
19:23Right.
19:24I love that.
19:25I love that.
19:26And I think you are going to be incredible.
19:28I'm putting my bid in right now.
19:32Thank you so much.
19:33I think it would be perfect.
19:35And we see you, you are enough.
19:37We see you.
19:38And I just thank you so much for lending your voice to this conversation and for doing what
19:44you do, not just in your roles, but, um, even in your real life.
19:48And, you know, like you said, every day you have to be thankful for it, that you're still
19:52around to do it.
19:53And, you know, it, it is an act of bravely because there are people out there who still
19:57don't understand it, who still respond.
19:59Um, they, they respond with hate to your love, but thank you for, for doing it.
20:03And thank you for being here to talk about it with us today.
20:06But most of all, thank you for opening this space for me to be able to be here.
20:12I really appreciate that.
20:14Absolutely.
20:14Thank you guys.
20:17God bless you.
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