I apologize in advance but I don’t watch The Walking Dead so I don’t know many of the characters. However, I do like to recognize awesome people doing awesome things so that’s what brought me to Khary Payton who plays Ezekiel on the show. Khary and his wife, Stacy Reed Payton, share two children, Karter and Maya. I don’t have ages but Stacy and Khary have been together for a little over a decade, so I imagine they fall somewhere around 10 or younger. Karter is the older of the two and on Monday, Karter made a very big decision, he asked his parents to let the world know that he identified as a boy. Khary posted the adorable IG photo of Karter giving us the thumbs up below with this caption:
This my kid. One of the most happy, well-adjusted individuals I’ve ever known. My son, Karter. Karter with a K because it reminded him of my name. He chose it. You see, he was born female but has always identified as a boy. He thought it would be cool if I announced it on social media. I told him that there would be so many supporters but also a lot of jerks who would be harsh. He said, “Yeah, I know about trolls, daddy. I can handle trolls.” 😅 Man, there is nothing more beautiful than watching your child feel the joy of exploring what it means to be true to themselves. This is his journey, and I am here for it. I hope you all have the opportunity to feel the unquenchable love that I am feeling right now.
Stacy also posted a photo of Karter to IG with the caption:
I am overjoyed to introduce you to my son, Karter. When he was born we thought he was a girl. We were mistaken. He is a boy. A smart, funny, brave, loving, magnificent boy. Karter is so confident in who he is and was thrilled for me to let everyone know that he’s finally living as his true self. As a boy. As my son. As Karter. I am so incredibly proud of him and feel blessed every single day to be his mama.
On Stacy’s post, Khary replied “This is awesome.We got this.” It’s incredible. I’m moved by the amount of love and support jumping off the page for their boy. I particularly like how Stacy worded it, “When he was born we thought he was a girl. We were mistaken. He is a boy.” What’s even more heartening is Karter’s confidence and strength that will help him take on the trolls. I end up saying the same thing in these situations, but it is always true when I say it: these kids will benefit so much in life being allowed to live their truths out loud as early as possible. So I applaud all the Paytons, Karter, Khary, Stacy and Maya, for creating a supportive and loving home for their family.
The more we see parents proudly embracing their kids as they are, the more kids everywhere will feel free and be able to live their true selves. Parents like Dwyane Wade and Gabrielle Union, Colin Mochrie, Charlize Theron, Cynthia Nixon, Warren Beatty and Annette Benning, Cher and now the Paytons are blazing a trail that prove invaluable for future parents of transgender children. Since I am a parent who has benefited from all the LGBTQ trailblazers who allowed my child to never live in secret, I thank you. I cannot tell you how much better you made our lives by waging these battles before we got here.
Photo credit: Instagram and WENN/Avalon
This is so beautiful, what wonderful parents. I have a ftm trans son. Watching him grow into the person he was meant to be has been the joy of my life. My son is a young adult now and sometimes I’m terrified for his safety and his future. Then I see things like this (and the recent SCOTUS ruling) and i know we are moving in the right direction. Thank you to all parents who share their beautiful trans children with the world. I know it can be scary.
Heartwarming. And we all need to have our “heartswarmed” right now.
Beautiful boy, beautiful family.
I wish I had as much strength and bravery now as an adult, let alone when I was that age. That kid gives me hope for the future.
This is so beautiful and encouraging. I particularly applaud the children who ask their parents to « introduce » them to the world. They don’t have to. But that’s how they become trailblazers. For all the people who say « they are too young », « it’s criminal », « it’s just a phase, let them wait until they are adults », they don’t realize THAT’s the criminal approach because some of these kids, whose true identity is stifled, won’t even make it to adulthood, as the pain can lead them to commit desperate acts. The suicide rate for trans kids and teens is alarming. Until the day it’s no longer « newsworthy » I applaud all the LGBTQ people who are brave enough to pave the way, just by being themselves.
I’m so moved by these parents and they’re love and support but Wow their sons bravery knocks me out. I’ve often thought this generation fierceness will change the world
( I have a 12 yo) HOPE in a lot of bleakness is so needed.
This is so beautiful. His children will grow up with so much confidence knowing how fully their parents love, support, and accept them. Khary seems like a really sweet guy — I kinda fell off of Walking Dead because that show just doesn’t know when to quit, but I LOVE Ezekiel!
❤️❤️❤️ I watched TWD up through when Rick left the show. Khary was always fun to watch on The Talking Dead, which I stopped watching when all the garbage about the host came out. He comes off as a warm and genuine person and his entire family seems wonderful. I’m especially happy for Karter.
I cried a little reading this. There is so much joy in the words, great parents and the kids will be awesome. There´s hope for humanity in this world still.
I got misty eyed too. What a beautiful family.
I love this. A friend of mine has a “daughter”
who is so obviously a boy and is in such denial it breaks my heart. He asks to be called a boy’s name this past year and she wouldn’t go for it, instead they settled on initials. Seeing stories like this are so uplifting and I wish my friend would see the comments and understand that she is not alone in this. That there is a community for her and her son and by stifling who he really is she is not keeping her little girl but rather killing who he really is and not allowing him to flourish. I find these stories so personal because I love her little boy but since he’s not my child I feel like there’s only so much I can do.
I really hope your friend sees the light and let’s her son be himself before it’s too late. I just don’t understand some people.
I had worked with a nurse who’s grandson was born a granddaughter. At age 11 she no longer wanted to be called Stephanie but Stefan. His family accepted this and made he transitioned. By 21 he committed suicide. According to grandma, he had written his note blamed his supportive mom for letting him become a man. as he felt he was just a child to make such a decision. Stefan wanted to return to Stephanie. I can not imagine the lost a parent feels when a child dies.
Kimm3y-
Your story sounds absolutely heart breaking and I’m so sorry. But I would like to point out this is NOT the norm.
As stated may times in the comments, when our trans kids are allowed to live their truths, they feel supported, accepted and whole. Which is a blessing.
I don’t know who Khary is and I’ve never watched the WD, but him and his wife sound like awesome parents who support and love their kids. That is never a bad thing!
My niece is mtf trans. She had such a hard time coming out to us. We all knew that she was suffering through “something”, especially when puberty started to hit, and my sister feared all of the worst possible things.
When she finally said “I’m trans”, it was actually a huge relief for everyone. With very few exceptions (people who are no longer a part of our lives), the family has welcomed this beautiful girl with open arms. She is still fearful of trolls, and worries about what people think. But, she’s a Walking Dead fan, so I hope that Karter’s courage can give her hope.