Whoopi Goldberg is the executive producer of the new reality TV show, Strut. It’s not a competition like Tyra Banks’ America’s Top Model, but the stars of the show are all models. And they are all transgender individuals. The only trans male model on the show is Laith De La Cruz.
Laith reveals a lot about himself. The cameras follow him when he visits his mother who is a Pentecostal Christian. Laith knows “her views aren’t going to change” but he asks for her respect. She asks Laith to come to church with her but the last time he did, “They pointed at me and said ‘There is a demonic spirit within this person.'” When Laith asks his mother if she is ashamed of him, she doesn’t say anything. “You say I’m going to hell…” says Laith but his mother, who still calls him Ashley, interrupts. “I don’t say that — my Bible says that.” Later, Laith tells the camera about his “need to please other people, especially my family. And obviously the fear of going to hell.” Strut airs Tuesdays at 9pm on Oxygen.
