Sahhara’s journey

Miss Sahhara of Nigeria was crowned the very first Super Sireyna Worldwide 2014.

Dark complexion, long blonde hair, and towering height — these physical features made 29-year-old Nigerian Sahhara Henson stand out from other contestants in Eat Bulaga’s Super Sireyna Worldwide Grand Finals last July 19.

More than her exotic beauty, it was Sahhara’s struggles made the judges do a double-take on how this stunner can revolutionize the way we look at gay beauty pageants in the country.

Struggles in Nigeria

Sahhara was a product of a broken family.

“It was an unhappy childhood [be]cause my Dad wasn’t really there. He was always out on things all day, doing his business. So I mean he wasn't really present,” she said.

Her awareness of her sexual preference made life even worse. Sahhara was born a transwoman—a woman trapped in a man’s body.

In Nigeria, sexual discrimination is prevalent. Women are treated with less respect as compared to men. But the situation is much worse for transsexuals as they are considered criminals.

“I feel [that] I’m a woman and I was projecting what I was feeling. People saw it as wrong and against humanity so I get bullied a lot,” Sahhara explained.

Upon admitting her own sexuality, Sahhara knew that life would be harder. Nevertheless, she continued to act and dress like a woman.

Turning point

Soon, Sahhara became so used to being bullied and insulted in Nigeria. She endured almost everything, except for one incident that changed her life forever: being imprisoned for acting like a woman.

Sahhara got involved in a robbery incident and while she was questioned at the police station, the police officers asked her to strip as part of the investigation. There they discovered that she was just using shoulder pads to have hips.

“They were like, ‘Oh we gotta teach this one a lesson,’ and then they locked me up, they put me on the hottest part of prison with other criminals,” she said. 

After three days, Sahhara was released. At that time, she thought she only had two choices left: leave the country or commit suicide. Since Sahhara was studying at that time, and her school in Nigeria had affiliations with other universities in the United Kingdom, she decided to leave Nigeria for good.

Freedom, finally

At 19, Sahhara started her new life in London. While working at nightclubs as a performer, she met gays who had connections in the fashion industry. They encouraged her to become a model. Soon, the abused Sahhara in Nigeria became a world-class ramp model in London.

She was earning enough money at that time, so she underwent some operations to correct her physical features and become a woman.

“I haven’t done a lot. I have done the very important aspect of becoming a woman like having the breast top quite done,” Sahhara said.

In 2011, Sahhara started to join beauty pageants in London and other countries. She placed first runner-up next to Miss Thailand during the Miss International Queen 2011. Eventually, she was shortlisted and handpicked by Eat Bulaga to join Super Sireyna Worldwide, where she emerged victorious.

When asked about her advocacy, she said, “It will be good to teach people more about who we are, where we come from, and that we are normal.”

After all that she’s been through, Sahhara proved that gender or race can never stop anyone from fulfilling their dreams. One day, when the time is right, Sahhara will come back to her native land, proud at having become the woman she was, and full of hope for the woman she turned out to be. —Gerald Vista/KG, GMA News