Warrior Princess: A U.S. Navy Seal’s Journey to Coming Out Transgender

242 Pages·2013·3.598 MB·English

by  Kristin Beck, Anne Speckhard

Advance Praise for Kristin Beck, Anne Speckhard and Warrior Princess:

“Speckhard and Beck have teamed up to give us one of the smartest and most
important books of the year. Warrior Princess is the story of Kristin Beck,
formerly Chris, a decorated Navy SEAL and American patriot who faced a
lifelong struggle to come to terms with her gender identity.
The book could stand alone as an account of Beck’s distinguished career in the
military, but Warrior Princess has a bolder message to send to its readers:
transgender people are people… and some of them are even our national heroes.

Beck is a natural protagonist…strong, hardworking, and deeply patriotic. Every
reader can relate to her, whether it’s her coming of age story, her decision to join
the elite Navy SEALs, or even her coming to terms with her gender identity. And
where Kristin’s experiences differ from the readers, Speckhard subtly exercises
her understanding of psychology and sociology to bridge the gap.
Whether a pacifist or a hawk, advocate or opponent of LGBT equality, Warrior
Princess is a raw, honest, and surprisingly relatable read.”—OutServe Magazine

“Warrior Princess is a profile of courage, both physical and personal. It shatters
one’s perceptions of what courage is and how it is shown. Courage isn’t just
about physical bravery, it is also about personal bravery. Being transgender
requires a type of bravery very few could show, even by those who have been in
combat. Dr. Anne Speckhard does a marvelous job of taking us on a journey
about being transgender in the military. Warrior Princess should be required
reading by anyone supporting and taking care of our troops, whether they
support transgender issues or not.”—Colonel Carl A. Castro (U.S. Army, retired)

“Kristin Beck is a woman of extraordinary courage. Her story is an inspiration to
all and a call to arms for those who wish to live authentically. Her bravery as a
SEAL rivals the bravery she exhibits in crossing the seemingly inviolable gender
boundary. Ms. Beck is a hero who has sacrificed for her country and shed light
on this most misunderstood area of human behavior.”—Randi Ettner, Ph.D.,
author of Gender Loving Care, Confessions of a Gender Defender; editor, of
Principles of Transgender Medicine and Surgery

“As a Vietnam vet who saw more combat in the sixties than any man should see
in a lifetime, I related to Kristin’s book more than anything I have read in a long
time. I have been a cross-dresser and this gives me courage. I am now out in the
two worlds and hope to find my own peace. I believe this book could help many
people come “out” in any way and live the life they wish.”—George Massarella,
173rd Airborne Brigade, Central Highlands Vietnam; 4th Infantry Division, I
Corps, Vietnam

“Military service in combat is so deeply meaningful to those who experience it
that you can feel the undercurrent of emotion in the stories they tell. Gender
transition is like that, too; difficult to explain to those who haven’t been there,
but deeply meaningful to those who have. This story trembles with the intensity
of both experiences, and touches the best in humanity in both worlds, without
ignoring the brutality that we must also acknowledge exists. A testament to
bravery, Warrior Princess reaches for the best in all of us.”—Jamison Green,
Ph.D., author of Becoming a Visible Man

“Though Chris had a military career beyond what most experience, Kristin’s
journey will be all too familiar to the transgender people currently serving. This
is a book about courage, and one that should challenge our notions of what
heroism looks like.”—Indra Lusero, J.D. Director, Transgender Military
Initiative, Palm Center

“There’s no need for the military to be a one-size-fits-all world. This story will
widen your perspective about the meaning of gender and how much it matters—
or doesn’t—for successful military service. This inspiring account is also written
for anyone working with veterans and their transition to civilian life, no matter
what the issues might be.”—Diane H. Mazur, University of Florida law
professor, former Air Force officer, and author of A More Perfect Military: How
the Constitution Can Make Our Military Stronger (Oxford University Press)

“This momentous book shares vividly the real life experiences of a veteran
SEAL who goes on to transition as a civilian. The raw adrenaline packed events
explicitly describe growing up, marriage, combat and leave and are experienced
through anecdotes to the audience. The dramatic combat action and the shared
emotional responses to both the war and the gender dysphoria are conviction of
the traumas of both combat and transition. The book will be an inspiration to
individuals struggling with gender dysphoria and seeking to find a way forwards.
It will be a useful resource to share with important family members and friends
to read in advance or alongside sharing plans of the change ahead for an
individual.”—Professor Kevan Wylie, MD FRCP FRCPsych FRCOG; Director,
World Professional Association for Transgender Health; President, World
Association for Sexual Health

“As Kristin Beck is showing us, gender expectations are for the birds. You can
be anything in this life regardless of gender identity and, best of all, be true to
yourself because of it.”—Thomas Beatie, author of Labor of Love: The Story of
One Man’s Extraordinary Pregnancy

“To show that even a strong and patriotic Navy SEAL can be a transgender
person totally blows away any stereotype of who trans people really
are.”—Monica Helms, Founder and President of the Transgender American
Veterans Association and author of Tales from a Two-Gendered Mind

“Kristin Beck is to be commended for her courage under fire in the service of
this great country and for her determination to share her story in spite of the
negative consequences that most transgender people face when they come out.
Warrior Princess is an action-packed book that demonstrates the “flight into
hypermasculinity” I have observed in so many Veterans and active duty service
members over the past thirty years of providing transgender health care in
federal settings. There are thousands of transgender Veterans who can resonate
with Kristin’s story and benefit from the honesty embodied in this book. I highly
recommend this exciting story as a modern day, amped up, sequel to memoirs
from transgender Veterans such as Christine Jorgenson who have helped pave
the path to acceptance over many years of struggle.”—George R. Brown, MD,
DFAPA Professor of Psychiatry, East Tennessee State University, Member -
Board of Directors World Professional Association for Transgender Health,
former active duty military psychiatrist

“Chris/Kristin Beck is a true American hero, epitomizing professional and
personal courage, both as a Navy Seal and as a transgender advocate in civilian
life. She fought for this country to protect the democratic way of life she
believed in. Now she shares her amazing story as she challenges the American
principles of liberty and equality on the battlefield of gender expectations.”—
Dina Titus, Ph.D., Politician and author of Bombs in the Backyard: Atomic
Testing and American Politics

W P
ARRIOR RINCESS
A U.S. Navy SEAL’s Journey to
Coming out Transgender

K B , U.S. N SEAL (R .)
RISTIN ECK AVY ET
&
A S , P .D.
NNE PECKHARD H
First published 2013
by Advances Press
McLean, VA
Copyright 2013 Advances Press - All rights reserved.
Book Design by Nikki Hensley (www.hensleygraphics.com)
Editing by Jayne Pillemer
Cover Design by Kristin Beck & Jessica Speckhard
Photos courtesy of Kristen Beck
Professional photographs found in Third Life section by Christy Borjes
(http://www.borjesphotography.com)

All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reprinted or reproduced or
utilized in any form or by any electronic, mechanical, or other means, now
known or hereafter invented, including photocopying and recording, or in any
information storage or retrieval system, without permission in writing from the
publishers. Exception to this may be made in the case of brief quotations
embodied in critical articles and reviews.
Every effort has been made to contact and acknowledge copyright owners, but
the author and publisher would be pleased to have any errors or omissions
brought to their attention so that corrections may be published at a later printing.
Library of Congress Control Number: 2013936593
ISBN 978-1-935866-42-8 –Warrior Princess—Hardcover
ISBN 978-1-935866-43-5 –Warrior Princess—Paperback
ISBN 978-1-935866-44-2 –Warrior Princess—E-Pub