The Biden administration honored transgender woman Alba Rueda with the International Women of Courage Award during a ceremony on Wednesday at the White House in observance of International Women’s Day.
Rueda received one of the 11 awards that Secretary of State Antony Blinken and First Lady Jill Biden gave out.
As the country’s first openly transgender politician to hold a top government post, Alba Rueda is an Argentinean politician who created history.
The Biden administration just gave a “Woman of courage” award to a man.
— Clayton Keirns (@CKeirns) March 8, 2023
I would say I’m surprised, but… pic.twitter.com/L25mWGESwj
Rueda worked at the Ministry of Women, Genders, and Diversity from January 2020 until May 2022 as the Undersecretary of Diversity Policy.
The award, according to some, is intended to honor the bravery and accomplishments of women, and others could argue that giving it to a biological male would be improper or even demeaning to women’s hardships and successes.
They could also claim that by honoring a man for his work in a sector unrelated to his own, this choice could be regarded as a method to downplay or erase the contributions of women.
