By Liana Jacob
MEET the stylish merman who flaunts his tail on the beach to fight off haters who discriminate against mermen and subject him to homophobic comments but has since received positive attention after declaring that “Mer-people” are inclusive and can be any race, colour or sexuality.
Glamorous images show Douglas Borges (24) wearing brightly coloured makeup and covered in jewellery while posing on a rock with his purple tail.
He can also be seen majestically sitting on a rock with trident, the weapon of Poseidon, the god of the sea, while another picture shows Douglas wearing a towel on his head with his chic purple tail in a bubble bath.
He is then shown taking his trident into the sea revealing his scaly green body and a shell crown on his head.
Douglas, who is from Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, has been captivated by the nature of mermaids and mermen since he was only nine years old. His hobby has attracted a variety of women and children who are eager to learn more about the history of merpeople.
While his hobby has attracted some positive responses, Douglas has also received some negative attention as well.
“Guys call me a Mermaid, a ‘stupid gay guy’ and other comments like that coming from very sad, closed-minded people,” he said.
“It happens very often on the beach, unfortunately, also within the Mermaid Merfolk world, there is still a lot of discrimination against those who own fabric tails, rather than a silicon tail.
“In the Mermaid and Merman world, there is jealousy as well, especially if you look great and that’s when the haters start attacking you on Instagram.
“I know that I have a very strong, awesome look, even if I have a fabric tail. It doesn’t matter to me. Since I was a little boy at the age of nine, the Mermaid tales and pictures have fascinated me.
“It’s amazing to see that beautiful woman with long hair, crossing the oceans and being so strong and powerful on her own; half fish half woman, how amazing is that?
“I really believe that Mermaids and Mermen exist. A Mermaid is a Mythological creature that empowers women with her beauty and show all that beauty and freedom that she has.
“I love the ocean, sea life and the beach. I live one block from the Copacabana beach, and I always use my Merman tails to swim, because I love to be a merman for few hours.
“Since I was a boy I used to make my mermaid tails with towels and blankets. There is a lot of discrimination about guys being mermen, I hear a lot bullying and stupid stuff sometimes.
“I just tell them to get a life and worry about their own lives; it’s me, I am what I am. At the age that I am at, I will not accept bullying.
“I am having fun and entertaining myself and others; the kids, girls and women get crazy on the beach to touch my tail and ask me how long can I be outside the water, what I eat in the ocean, and even if I talk with the fishes.
“It’s magical and I let their imagination fly high – mine too. I love Disney fairy tales, I collect many movies and cartoons, Ariel and Princess Aurora are my Favourite, but I love them all. My dream is to visit Disney World in Florida.
“I also like to post pictures and videos of myself cleaning the beach, and asking people to keep the water clean from the beach, free of garbage, or many turtles could die eating plastic, straws etc.”
While his obsession with the merworld started when he was a young boy, he bought his first two professional mermaid tails in 2016.
“I got my two professional mermaid tails in 2016, and I am very happy about them. They came from the USA and I am planning to get two different ones, so that I can fully pursue my dream of being a Merman,” Douglas said.
“There are many Mermaids and Mermen all over the world, on Instagram and Facebook. We connect with each other and talk about the mermaid lifestyle, we call ourselves MerFolks.
“Mermaid and Mermen could be any person: Whites, Blacks, Asians, Latinos, it doesn’t really matter, and they can have any body shape.
“I want to keep doing it for a long time, it’s great exercise for your back, spine and swimming is something that I love too.”
For more information visit: https://www.instagram.com/doug_tritao/
