In accepting a Human Rights Campaign
(HRC) award on Saturday, actress Candis Cayne praised Caitlyn
Jenner's recent coming out.
Cayne is best known for her portrayal
of transgender mistress Carmelita on ABC's Dirty Sexy Money,
which made her the first transgender actress to play a recurring
transgender character on primetime television.
At its San Francisco gala, HRC
presented Cayne with its Visibility Award.
In accepting the honor, Cayne praised
the increasing inclusion of transgender characters on television.
“Dirty Sexy Money, Elementary,
Sense8, Orange is the New Black, Transparent, among others, that
are making such strides in the world by writing dynamic trans
characters,” Cayne told the HRC audience. “When people
experience these vibrant, real characters then maybe they can more
easily relate to and ally with real transgender people they meet in
the world.”
“Speaking of the world and the
reachings thereof, there's my dear girlfriend Caitlyn Jenner coming
out and truly changing the conversation worldwide,” she said.
Cayne added that her participation in
Jenner's I Am Cait docu-series has been “an incredible
journey of self-discovery.”
(Related: Caitlyn
Jenner's
I Am Cait
renewed for second season.)