Since 2022, the beloved TikTok star has gained popularity due to her heartwarming and emotional “Days of Girlhood” series – which followed her first year as a trans woman.
In addition to highlighting her transition, Mulvaney has used her social media platform to educate and bring awareness to the LGBTQIA+ community as a whole.
While attending the 2023 Teen Vogue Summit, the 26-year-old talent reflected on her emotional journey, including the start of her “Days of Girhood series.
“In that first video, I just remember hoping that people could see my intentions were good and I was the truest version of myself and I was ready to learn.”
While she cultivated a dedicated and supportive fanbase on social media, she also became a target for conservative bigots who spewed anti-trans hate her way on numerous occasions.
When reflecting on her most challenging moments of 2023, Mulvaney said she regretted sharing every aspect of her journey so fast.
“I think that is the one piece of this whole last year; I rushed a lot of things. I talked about a lot of things really fast, and I think there were some little minute details that got lost in the mix, and I’m doing those now,” she explained.
While Mulvaney has adopted new ways of protecting her peace, she isn’t going to let the hate or anti-trans individuals take away her voice.
“When I was experiencing an extreme amount of hate earlier this year, I started to shut down and stopped using my voice, and I was just like ‘, I’m just going to get really pretty, and that will keep me successful, and I’m just going to stay quiet because I don’t want to be experiencing this vitriol anymore,’” she explained.
“What I realised was it made me kind of a shallower version of myself, when in reality, my voice is my most powerful thing. And I thought about ageing to become a woman in my forties and fifties, and I want to look back on this time period and think like, ‘Oh my god, yeah, I wore the cute dresses, but I also said some really important things too.’”
Mulvaney’s recent interview comes a few weeks after she was awarded the Trevor Project’s Suicide Prevention Advocate of the Year award.
“In a world where LGBTQ young people too often face adversity and discrimination, Dylan Mulvaney stands as a source of light and hope, reminding us that there is strength in unity and power in vulnerability,” said Kevin Wong, Senior Vice President of Marketing, Communications, and Content.
“Through her ongoing advocacy work and unapologetic celebration of their trans identity, Dylan is an exemplary possibility model for LGBTQ young people to envision a world for themselves where they can be happy, successful, and thrive openly and authentically.”