Veso Golden Oke
Born
Nigeria[1]
Citizenship
[1]
Occupation(s)Model, Actress, Activist, entrepreneur

Veso Golden Oke (born 1993/1994) is a Nigerian trans rights activist, model, make-up artist and hairstylist.[2][3] In 2019, she became the first openly transgender woman to compete in a beauty pageant in Africa.[4][5][6]

Early life

Oke was born to a Nigerian father and a Ghanaian mother.[6] She was raised Anglican.[6]

As a child, Oke was feminine and felt that she was a woman; she never identified as a gay man.[1] She has recalled that at age 8, she used to pray she would wake up in a girl's body.[3] At age 14, she learned online about transgender identity and came to terms with her own identity.[6] Although initially when she came out her family thought "the devil had taken over her," her parents soon became supportive.[6][1]

Career

In 2014, Oke left Nigeria and moved to Ghana.[6] There, she began working as a model and mentor to models in Accra.[1]

In August 2019, Oke competed in Miss Europe Continental, a beauty pageant being held in Ghana.[4]

Personal life

By 2018 Oke was on HRT.[1]

See also

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 5 6 "Nigerian-born Ghanaian Trans model: 'I fight every day to look more feminine'". NoStringsNG – Voice of LGBTQ+ Nigeria. 2018-01-26. Retrieved 2023-11-30.
  2. ↑ "Trans women speak on Western influence and being transgender in Nigeria". The Guardian Nigeria News. 2019-03-27. Retrieved 2023-11-30.
  3. 1 2 "I'm a woman with shrinking, non-functional penis – Ghanaian transgender". GhanaWeb. 2019-02-26. Retrieved 2023-11-30.
  4. 1 2 "Nigerian model becomes the first trans contestant in a beauty pageant". NoStringsNG – Voice of LGBTQ+ Nigeria. 2019-08-08. Retrieved 2023-11-30.
  5. ↑ "Veso Golden Oke becomes first transwoman to contest in beauty pageant in Africa". India Times. Retrieved 2023-11-30.
  6. 1 2 3 4 5 6 "Nigerian Transgender To Compete In Ghana Beauty Pageant -". The Herald. 2019-08-22. Retrieved 2023-11-30.
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