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Dan Kerman, Gay.com / PlanetOut.com Network
Wednesday, January 23, 2002 / 04:06 PM
Today's Headlines
Transgendered man fights for custody

Testimony continued Wednesday in a Florida custody case that could
have dramatic implications for transgendered people.

It raises a variety of questions, including: Does Florida law view a
female-to-male transsexual as a man? If a female-to-male transsexual
marries a woman, is that marriage legal; and if not, does the
transsexual have any child custody rights?

Michael Kantaras was born Margo Kantaras in 1959 but completed sexual
reassignment surgery in 1988. A year later Kantaras married Linda
Forsythe in Lake Mary, Fla., and adopted her one-month-old son from a
previous relationship. At the time of the marriage, Forsythe was
aware that Kantaras was born a woman. The couple then decided they
wanted a child of their own. Using sperm donated by Michael's
brother, Linda gave birth to a daughter in January 1992.

In 1998, Michael Kantaras filed for divorce and sought custody of his
two children. Linda Kantaras then filed a suit of her own. She claims
Michael is not her husband because he was never legally declared a
man. And since the state of Florida does not recognize same-sex
marriage, she claims they are not actually married and he is not
entitled to custody of their children.

"It's typical of the type of problems transsexuals run into," said
Denise LeClair with the International Foundation for Gender
Education. "She was fully aware that the partner was transsexual. It
didn't bother her then, but then she comes back and uses it as a
weapon," she told the Gay.com/PlanetOut.com Network.

Michael Kantaras' attorneys are arguing that despite being born a
woman, he is now a man and the father of the children and is entitled
to all the rights normally associated with husbands and fathers. They
also argue that ending his parental rights would be harmful to his
children.

The trial began Tuesday with testimony from Walter Bockting, a
clinical psychologist and transgender expert who discussed sexual
identity from a physical and emotional standpoint. Wednesday, the
court heard testimony from Dr. Ted Huang, the physician who performed
the sexual reassignment surgery. Circuit Court Senior Judge Gerard
O'Brien has played an active role in questioning witnesses throughout
the testimony.

LeClair says it's time the government got out of both "the gender
business and the marriage business. As long as the government is
defining your sex for you and using it as the basis for who you can
marry, we will continue to run into these problems," she says.
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