Carmen Carrera (born April 13, 1985)Non-loginwalled link at bibliogram.pussthecat.org
/ref> is an American

reality television Reality television is a genre of television programming that documents purportedly unscripted real-life situations, often starring unfamiliar people rather than professional actors. Reality television emerged as a distinct genre in the early ...

personality, model, burlesque performer, and actress, known for appearing on the third season of the

Logo A logo (abbreviation of logotype; ) is a graphic mark, emblem, or symbol used to aid and promote public identification and recognition. It may be of an abstract or figurative design or include the text of the name it represents as in a wo ...

series ''

RuPaul's Drag Race ''RuPaul's Drag Race'' is an American reality competition television series, the first in the ''Drag Race'' franchise, produced by World of Wonder for Logo TV (season 1–8), WOW Presents Plus, VH1 (season 9–14) and, beginning with the f ...

'', as well as its spin-off series ''

RuPaul's Drag U ''RuPaul's Drag U'' (as in "Drag University") is an American reality television series that debuted July 19, 2010, on Logo TV. Its final episode aired in August 2012. It was hosted by RuPaul and a team of drag queen "professors". ''Drag U'' was ...

''. Carrera is a

transgender woman A trans woman or a transgender woman is a woman who was assigned male at birth. Trans women have a female gender identity, may experience gender dysphoria, and may transition; this process commonly includes hormone replacement therapy and so ...

and a transgender rights activist.

Life and career

Carrera was born in

Elmwood Park, New Jersey Elmwood Park is a borough in Bergen County, New Jersey, United States, and is a bedroom suburb located from New York City. As of the 2010 United States census, the borough's population was 19,403,New Jersey's own Carmen Carrera brings the heat to Season 3 of "RuPaul's Drag Race"! , Out in Jersey
. Retrieved November 2, 2011. In 2011, she appeared in the third season of the reality television competition show, ''

''. Carrera is the second contestant in the history of the show (after season three castmate,

Shangela Chantize Darius Jeremy Pierce, better known as Shangela Laquifa Wadley or mononymously as Shangela (born November 22, 1980), is an American drag queen, reality television personality and actor best known for competing on ''RuPaul's Drag Race''. S ...

) to rejoin the cast after being eliminated, and along with

Raja ''Raja'' (; from , IAST ') is a royal title used for South Asian monarchs. The title is equivalent to king or princely ruler in South Asia and Southeast Asia. The title has a long history in South Asia and Southeast Asia, being attested f ...

Manila Luzon Karl Philip Michael Westerberg, better known by the stage name Manila Luzon (born August 10, 1981), is an American drag queen, recording artist, comedian and reality television personality. Luzon came to international attention as a contestant on ...

, and

Delta Work Delta Work is the stage name of Gabriel A. Villarreal, a Mexican-American drag performer and stylist, best known for competing on the third season of the reality competition television series '' RuPaul's Drag Race''. Villarreal received the ...

, was part of the clique known as the "Heathers", which took its name from the 1988 film, ''

Heathers ''Heathers'' is a 1989 American black comedy film written by Daniel Waters and directed by Michael Lehmann, in both of their respective film debuts. The film stars Winona Ryder, Christian Slater, Shannen Doherty, Lisanne Falk, Kim Walker, and ...

''. In episode 10, "RuPaul-a-Palooza", Carrera was eliminated for her performance while

lip-syncing Lip sync or lip synch (pronounced , the same as the word ''sink'', short for lip synchronization) is a technical term for matching a speaking or singing person's lip movements with sung or spoken vocals. Audio for lip syncing is generated th ...

to a

reggae Reggae () is a music genre that originated in Jamaica in the late 1960s. The term also denotes the modern popular music of Jamaica and its diaspora. A 1968 single by Toots and the Maytals, " Do the Reggay" was the first popular song to use ...

-inspired cover of RuPaul's song "

Superstar A superstar is someone who has great popular appeal and is widely known, prominent, or successful in their field. Celebrities referred to as "superstars" may include individuals who work as actors, musicians, athletes, and other media-based profe ...

". Judges

Michelle Visage Michelle Lynn Case (nee Shupack), better known as Michelle Visage (born September 20, 1968), is an American singer, television host, actress, radio DJ and producer. She first gained recognition as a member of the musical group Seduction which ...

Santino Rice Santino Quinto Rice (born 20 August 1974) is an American fashion designer and television personality. He is best known for his appearances on the reality television programs ''Project Runway'', ''RuPaul's Drag Race'' and '' On the Road with Aus ...

, and Billy Brasfield voted to re-invite Carrera to the competition in episode 12, "Jocks in Frocks". Subsequently, Carrera was eliminated in that episode after styling a muscular male athlete in her own signature "nude"-style of drag. The November 2011 issue of '' W'' featured a series of fictional products in realistically styled advertisements as part of an issue-wide art project. Carrera was featured in the series as the face for the fictional fragrance La Femme. In 2011, Carrera, along with third season ''Drag Race'' contestants

and Shangela Laquifa Wadley, appeared in a television commercial for the travel-related website

Orbitz Orbitz.com is a travel fare aggregator website and travel metasearch engine. The website is owned by Orbitz Worldwide, Inc., a subsidiary of Expedia Group. It is headquartered in the Citigroup Center, Chicago, Illinois. Background Origina ...

. Carrera has also been active in AIDS awareness and activism. After being featured in a

Gilead Sciences Gilead Sciences, Inc. () is an American biopharmaceutical company headquartered in Foster City, California, that focuses on researching and developing antiviral drugs used in the treatment of HIV/AIDS, hepatitis B, hepatitis C, influenza, and C ...

ad titled "Red Ribbon Runway" with fellow ''Drag Race'' co-stars Manila Luzon, Delta Work, Shangela Laquifa Wadley, and

Alexis Mateo Alexis Mateo Pacheco (born July 24, 1979), best known as Alexis Mateo, is a Puerto Rican drag queen, performer, reality television personality, fashion designer, and the winner of All American Goddess 2016, Miss Gay Days 2016 and National Show ...

, the dress she wore was auctioned by Logo in commemoration of

World AIDS Day World AIDS Day, designated on 1 December every year since 1988, is an international day dedicated to raising awareness of the AIDS pandemic caused by the spread of HIV infection and mourning those who have died of the disease. The acquired imm ...

. Proceeds from the auction were donated to the National Association of People with AIDS. Carrera appeared as a "drag professor" in two episodes of the second season of ''RuPaul's Drag U''. In the episode "80s Ladies", she gave singer Stacey Q a confidence-boosting makeover. Carrera appeared in recording artist Lovari's music video for "Take My Pain Away". In an episode of the ABC news program '' Primetime: What Would You Do?'' that aired on May 4, 2012, Carrera portrayed the role of a transgender server working in a New Jersey diner. An actor playing a customer berates Carrera's character regarding his past experience of being served by her when she had presented as male, prompting other customers to come to Carrera's defense. This program also marked the first occasion in which Carrera publicly revealed herself to be transgender. On June 11, 2012, Carrera appeared in an episode of the

TLC TLC may refer to: Arts and entertainment Television * ''TLC'' (TV series), a 2002 British situational comedy television series that aired on BBC2 * TLC (TV network), formerly the Learning Channel, an American cable TV network ** TLC (Asia), an A ...

series ''

Cake Boss ''Cake Boss'' is an American reality television series, which originally aired on the cable television network TLC. The series premiered on April 19, 2009, and has spawned four spin-offs: '' Next Great Baker'', ''Kitchen Boss'', ''Bake You Ric ...

'', "Bar Mitzvah, Beads & Oh Baby!", in which she unknowingly participated in a prank involving "Cousin Anthony" Bellifemine, the cousin of "Cake Boss" Buddy Valastro, who was set up with a date with Carrera. The punchline of the joke had Valastro tell Bellifemine that "...that's a man, baby!" Carrera, however, originally agreed to appear on the program to promote equality for the transgender community, not aware that she would be involved in a joke. Following the airing of the program, Carrera rebuked the situation on

Facebook Facebook is an online social media and social networking service owned by American company Meta Platforms. Founded in 2004 by Mark Zuckerberg with fellow Harvard College students and roommates Eduardo Saverin, Andrew McCollum, Dustin Mosk ...

Life Ball 2014 red carpet 117 Carmen Carrera David LaChapelle

Valastro subsequently apologized for the incident, saying that

I owe an apology to the entire LGBT community. It was absolutely not my intention to upset or offend her, or anyone within the community, and I was wrong to use the words I did. I am a supporter of gay rights and equality, and while I regret this situation and my choice of words, I am thankful to have received this feedback and the opportunity to learn from this mistake. I hope that Carmen accepts my sincere regrets.

The following day, on June 12, 2012, TLC announced that "Bar Mitzvah, Beads & Oh Baby!" had been pulled from rotation indefinitely, with the network planning to re-edit the episode for future broadcasts. A petition started requesting that Carrera serve as a model during the 2013

Victoria's Secret Fashion Show The Victoria's Secret Fashion Show was an annual promotional event sponsored by and featuring Victoria's Secret, a brand of lingerie. From 1995 to 2018, Victoria's Secret used the show to market its goods in high-profile settings. Models unde ...

, but despite media coverage and approximately 45,000 signatures the petition was unsuccessful. In March 2014, Carrera openly criticized RuPaul for use of the

pejorative A pejorative or slur is a word or grammatical form expressing a negative or a disrespectful connotation, a low opinion, or a lack of respect toward someone or something. It is also used to express criticism, hostility, or disregard. Sometimes, a ...

" she-male" on a

episode. She continued to be critical of RuPaul when the issue arose again in 2015, after Logo pulled the "Female or SheMale" game from ''DragRace'', which prompted RuPaul to defend the use of the word "tranny". Carrera's continued protests led to accusations by others that she was biting the hand that fed her. Carrera responded that, while she appreciates the opportunity to compete on ''DragRace'', she ultimately earned her status through her efforts and those of her agent, friends, fans, and family, and that she was not beholden to support RuPaul's use of

transphobic Transphobia is a collection of ideas and phenomena that encompass a range of negative attitudes, feelings, or actions towards transgender people or transness in general. Transphobia can include fear, aversion, hatred, violence or anger tow ...

language. Carrera was featured in the work of photographer

David LaChapelle David LaChapelle (born March 11, 1963) is an American photographer, music video director and film director. He is best known for his work in fashion, photography, which often references art history and sometimes conveys social messages. His pho ...

. She posed for a poster for Life Ball, which has two versions; each depicts her with different genitalia to represent the blurring of gender identity. In 2014, Carrera was included as part of the Advocate's annual "40 under 40" list and made a

cameo appearance A cameo role, also called a cameo appearance and often shortened to just cameo (), is a brief appearance of a well-known person in a work of the performing arts. These roles are generally small, many of them non-speaking ones, and are commonly ei ...

on ''

Jane the Virgin ''Jane the Virgin'' is an American romantic comedy-drama and satirical telenovela developed by Jennie Snyder Urman. The series premiered October 13, 2014, on The CW and concluded on July 31, 2019. It is a loose adaptation of the Venezuelan t ...

''s premiere episode. Also in 2014, Carrera was featured on the fifth anniversary cover of ''C☆NDY'' magazine along with thirteen other transgender women:

Janet Mock Janet Mock (born March 10, 1983) is an American writer, television host, director, producer and transgender rights activist. Her debut book, the memoir '' Redefining Realness'', became a ''New York Times'' bestseller. She is a contributing edit ...

Laverne Cox Laverne Cox (born May 29, 1972) is an American actress and LGBT advocate. She rose to prominence with her role as Sophia Burset on the Netflix series ''Orange Is the New Black'', becoming the first transgender person to be nominated for a Pr ...

Geena Rocero Geena Rocero (born 1983) is a Filipino-born American model, TED speaker, and transgender advocate based in New York City. Rocero is the founder of Gender Proud, a media production company that tells stories of the transgender community worldwid ...

Isis King Isis King (born October 1, 1985) is an American model, actress, and fashion designer. Most widely known for her role on both the eleventh cycle and the seventeenth cycle of the reality television show ''America's Next Top Model'', she was the ...

, Gisele Alicea, Leyna Ramous, Dina Marie, Nina Poon, Juliana Huxtable, Niki M'nray, Pêche Di, Carmen Xtravaganza and Yasmine Petty.

Personal life

Carrera was in a domestic partnership with Adrian Torres from 2009, but she announced in 2013 that they had separated. By 2015, the two had reunited, receiving relationship counseling while being filmed for the ''

Couples Therapy Couples therapy (also couples' counseling, marriage counseling, or marriage therapy) attempts to improve romantic relationships and resolve interpersonal conflicts. History Marriage counseling originated in Germany in the 1920s as part of the eu ...

'' television show. They wed on June 10, 2015, during filming for the show, which aired as the season finale on December 9, 2015. Carrera had publicly identified as a

gay ''Gay'' is a term that primarily refers to a homosexual person or the trait of being homosexual. The term originally meant 'carefree', 'cheerful', or 'bright and showy'. While scant usage referring to male homosexuality dates to the late 1 ...

man, and continued to present as such during filming of the third season of ''

'', but began her gender transition when she concluded filming. She is of Puerto Rican-

Peruvian Peruvians ( es, peruanos) are the citizens of Peru. There were Andean and coastal ancient civilizations like Caral, which inhabited what is now Peruvian territory for several millennia before the Spanish conquest of Peru, Spanish conquest in th ...

ancestry.

References

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Carrera, Carmen 1985 births Living people American burlesque performers American drag queens American people of Peruvian descent American people of Puerto Rican descent Female models from New Jersey Hispanic and Latino American actresses Hispanic and Latino American drag queens HIV/AIDS activists LGBT people from New Jersey American LGBT rights activists People from Elmwood Park, New Jersey Carmen Carrera Transgender actresses Transgender female models LGBT Hispanic and Latino American people Transgender drag performers