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Family Battles Fallen Hero's Trans Wife



Family members of a fallen firefighter are attempting to block his widow from receiving any monetary or property-based benefits because she is transgender.

Houston firefighter Thomas Araguz III was killed in the line of duty while battling a fire at a farm earlier this month. His wife, Nikki Araguz, will face her in-laws in Wharton County court, where they will argue the marriage is invalid because Nikki was born male.

Thomas Araguz's family has been granted a temporary restraining order to keep Nikki from collecting benefits until the matter is resolved in court, according to KRIV News. Thomas found out that his wife was born male just two months before his death. He reportedly moved out of their home following the revelation.  

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Reader Comments
  • Name: Lisa
    Date posted: 7/23/2010 11:29:10 PM
    Hometown: Sacramento

    Comment:

    Today it is a wife whose status is diminished by her birth sex. For years our status has been diminished by our sex or the sex of our mate. Haven't we learned that homophobia and transphobia and sexism are all the same excuse? She was his wife plain and simple. He made an adult decision to marry someone he loved. His family should quit using excuses to loot their son's widow.

  • Name: d
    Date posted: 7/23/2010 4:16:26 PM
    Hometown: raleigh

    Comment:

    The question here really is who is really a woman? I have said I am a woman for some time. Is this really his wife and should (s)he get anything?

  • Name: Jeannie
    Date posted: 7/23/2010 3:03:30 AM
    Hometown: Tempe, AZ, USA, Earth

    Comment:

    Bryan, the details given in the Advocate article are very sketchy. The interview linked by Chris of Miami says that Nikki's surgery took place two months AFTER their wedding so it would be reasonable to believe her husband knew about her anomaly (or birth defect, as she refers to it) before their marriage, as she claims in the interview.

  • Name: Jeannie
    Date posted: 7/23/2010 2:55:39 AM
    Hometown: Tempe, AZ, USA, Earth

    Comment:

    I am in awe of the strength of this woman. No way would I have been able to get through such an interview. Go to the link provided by Chris of Miami for the interview. From the interview and what I've read here, Mrs. Araguz probably has a form of intersex called hypogonadism, usually caused by low testosterone levels, which would explain the lack of other male development, such as a beard and lowered voice. Either the testes never developed or were missing altogether. Her birth certificate was amended 12 years prior to the surgery that corrected the anomalous genitalia. This not exactly the same as transsexualism. Based on what Nikki had to say, the marriage had been suffering from difficulties other than her sexual anomaly which would explain the separation. The legal action of her husband's family is just plain hateful, based on their ignorance of something that occurs, depending the expert quoted, in 0.5% to 1.7% of human births.

  • Name: Bryan
    Date posted: 7/23/2010 12:29:30 AM
    Hometown: Boston

    Comment:

    Condolences to the family, but how do you marry someone and not know they're transexual or intersex???

  • Name: Chris
    Date posted: 7/23/2010 12:17:03 AM
    Hometown: Miami

    Comment:

    According to an interview she had here: http://www.dallasvoice.com/watch-fallen-firemans-trans-widow-speaks-out-1034921.html She had the removal operation 2 months after they got married. She also had a court order to change the gender on her birth certificate. She has neither male nor female genitalia, she herself calls it a "birth defect." . This poor woman, having to deal with all of this.

  • Name: Chris
    Date posted: 7/23/2010 12:06:45 AM
    Hometown: Miami

    Comment:

    This reporting of the story is very different from Queerty's reporting found here: http://www.queerty.com/dead-firefighter-leaves-behind-transgender-wife-his-family-wants-her-kicked-to-the-curb-20100720/ So which is it? Did he know she was trans (more likely intersex) and that she had the operating the day after their wedding, or did he only find out 2 months before he died? I'd really love the whole truth so people can make informed opinions and not substantiate transphobia.

  • Name: Kevin
    Date posted: 7/22/2010 11:23:33 PM
    Hometown: Baltimore

    Comment:

    The family feels that she is entitled to nothing because her marriage to their son was, in reality, a fraud. I'm not saying that transphobia doesn't play a part in their motives, it's just that not revealing that part of you is a huge lie that will break the foundation of any relationship.

  • Name: Justin
    Date posted: 7/22/2010 9:29:03 PM
    Hometown: America

    Comment:

    What a damn shame!



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