Walt Heyer

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Walt Heyer
Heyer speaks at the Church of God in Christ, Raleigh, North Carolina in 2016
Born
Walter James Heyer

(1940-10-25) October 25, 1940 (age 83)[1]
Los Angeles, California, U.S.
Occupation(s)Writer, activist
Spouses
Sarah Horton
​
​
(m. 1963⁠–⁠1984)​
  • Kaycee Heyer
Children2
Websitesexchangeregret.com

Walt Heyer (born October 25, 1940)[2] is an American author, activist and speaker who underwent gender reassignment and lived for eight years as a trans woman before detransitioning in 1991.[3][4][5][6][7]

Biography

Heyer was born in 1940 in Los Angeles to Charles and Mary Heyer. As a child, his grandmother "Mamie" made him a purple dress. When his parents discovered this, they would supervise all his visits and his father hit him. His uncle would sexually abuse him.[8] After what he described as a misdiagnosis [9] of gender dysphoria, Walt Heyer underwent gender reassignment surgery and lived for eight years as a woman named Laura Jensen,[10] before detransitioning. His experience led him to support the view "that transgender people often experience regret after transitioning, arguing that what transgender people actually need is 'psychiatric or psychological help.'"[11] In a 2020 video, Heyer described the source of his gender confusion as "being cross-dressed, being disciplined with a hardwood floor plank, and being sexually molested."[12]

Once "assistant manager of product planning for America Honda Motor Co",[13][14] Heyer now works as an author and as a contributor to The Federalist[15][16] and various other conservative media outlets. Left-leaning media watchdog and partisan advocacy group Media Matters for America has criticized Heyer as "a source of extreme transphobic commentary."[17]

Heyer's story is detailed in Ryan T. Anderson's 2018 book, When Harry Became Sally.[18] The progressive news website ThinkProgress criticized the book for overemphasizing detransition and Heyer for "[creating] a career for himself of advocating against transgender equality based on his 'ex-trans' narrative."[19]

Heyer's 2019 opinion column in USA Today[8] was cited as one of the paper's ten most read articles of the year,[20] and generated multiple published letters in response.[21][22]

In June 2020, YouTube removed a video of a Heritage Foundation panel that included Heyer, citing its hate speech guidelines,[23] a move which was criticized by various conservative media outlets including National Review and The Christian Post.[24][25]

Bibliography

  • Trading my Sorrows (2006)
  • Perfected by Love (2009)
  • Paper Genders (2011)
  • Sex Change -- It's Suicide (2013)
  • A Transgender's Faith (2015)
  • Kid Dakota and the Secret at Grandma's House (2015)
  • Trans Life Survivors (2018)

References

  1. ^ "R.G. & G.R. HARRIS FUNERAL HOMES , INC. v. EQUAL EMPLOYMENT OPPORTUNITY COMMISSION and AIMEE STEPHENS" (PDF). Supreme Court of the United States. Retrieved 2023-11-26.
  2. ^ "The birth of Walter Heyer". Retrieved 2023-11-26.
  3. ^ Voss, Donna Carol (2 Jul 2015). "Who Are the Villains in the Transgender World?". The Huffington Post. Archived from the original on 22 July 2015. Retrieved 5 Sep 2020.
  4. ^ "Have you heard the story of Walt Heyer?". The Rush Limbaugh Show. Archived from the original on 18 July 2015. Retrieved 22 July 2015.
  5. ^ "Sex Change Regret: The Other Side Of The Transgender Story". The Inquisitr News. 8 June 2015. Archived from the original on 22 July 2015. Retrieved 22 July 2015.
  6. ^ Brown, Michael L. (2014). Can You Be Gay And Christian?. Lake Mary, Florida: Charisma House. pp. 21–22. ISBN 9781621365945. Retrieved 22 July 2015.
  7. ^ Jeffreys, Sheila (2014). Gender Hurts: A Feminist Analysis of the Politics of Transgenderism. Routledge. pp. 12, 63–64, 73–77. ISBN 9781317695950. Retrieved 22 July 2015.
  8. ^ a b Heyer, Walt (11 February 2019). "Hormones, surgery, regret: I was a transgender woman for 8 years — time I can't get back". USA Today. Retrieved 23 Aug 2020.
  9. ^ Heyer, Walt. "Examples - Regret Is Real—and Transgenders Are Going Back". Archived from the original on June 21, 2015.
  10. ^ Fraga, Brian (5 June 2015). "Speaking Out About the Transgender 'Delusion'". National Catholic Register. Archived from the original on 22 July 2015. Retrieved 22 July 2015.
  11. ^ "What The Media Should Know About Walt Heyer And "Transition Regrets"". Media Matters for America. 2 June 2015. Retrieved 20 July 2015.
  12. ^ Heyer, Walt (2020). "Walt's Story". In His Image. American Family Studios. 2:21 minutes in.
  13. ^ "Honda tries to find if it's pulling buyers from other us cars". The Spokesman Review. The Associated Press. 6 March 1983. Retrieved 22 July 2015.
  14. ^ Heyer, Walt (November 18, 2019). "Pastor Jeff Looked at Me through the Eyes of God". Public Discourse. Retrieved January 28, 2024.
  15. ^ "CNN Newsroom Transcript". CNN International. Archived from the original on 20 July 2015. Retrieved 20 July 2015.
  16. ^ "Walt Heyer". The Federalist. 23 March 2023. Retrieved March 26, 2023.
  17. ^ Maza, Carlos (2 June 2015). "What The Media Should Know About Walt Heyer And "Transition Regrets"". Media Matters for America.
  18. ^ Anderson, Ryan T. (2018). When Harry Became Sally. Encounter Books. pp. 69–72. ISBN 9781594039614.
  19. ^ Ford, Zack (25 January 2018). "Conservative book 'When Harry Became Sally' attacks trans people while conveniently leaving them out". ThinkProgress. Retrieved 9 June 2021.
  20. ^ "Most-read USA TODAY Opinion columns of 2019". USA Today. 27 Dec 2019. Retrieved 23 Aug 2020.
  21. ^ Bryant, Samantha (17 Feb 2019). "Brazilian Butt lifts can be safe when done right: Readers sound off". USA Today.
  22. ^ Suffredini, Kasey (24 Feb 2019). "Jussie Smollett crying wolf helps no one: Readers sound off". USA Today. Retrieved 23 Aug 2020.
  23. ^ "YouTube Censors Heritage Foundation Video on Gender Dysphoria". The Heritage Foundation. 19 Jun 2020. Retrieved 23 Aug 2020.
  24. ^ Waggoner, Kristen (25 Jun 2020). "YouTube's Transgender Problem". National Review. Retrieved 23 Aug 2020.
  25. ^ Showalter, Brandon (20 June 2020). "YouTube censors video testimony of former transgender, calls it 'hate speech'". The Christian Post. Retrieved 23 Aug 2020.


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