PEOPLE magazine has confirmed that Chastity Bono, the only child of the Cher and Sonny Bono entertainment duo, began undergoing a sex change. She started the process after her 40th birthday in March, and will be changing her name to Chaz Bono.
Chastity, a political and social activist, formerly identified as a lesbian. Her long-time girlfriend and famous mother are very supportive of this transition, despite the fact that Cher allegedly “flipped out” when her daughter came out nearly 20 years ago. “I always had this idea that (Chastity) would get married and have a family”, Cher told PEOPLE.
Although father Sonny took the news well, Cher banished Chastity from their Manhattan apartment. Chastity, a student at New York University, decided to keep her sexual identity a secret when she dropped out of college to pursue a career in rock music. A few members of the gay community had other ideas, and tipped off a tabloid about Bono’s lesbianism. While she describes the event as “the most traumatic thing that ever happened to me”, she later embraced her identity and took a job at the Gay and Lesbian Alliance Against Defamation (GLAAD).
So, inquiring minds want to know--what network is set to profit from Chastity’s gender change? She has already appeared in a slew of reality TV shows such as NBC’s “The Biggest Loser” and “Deal or No Deal”. Bravo, A&E, and the WE networks are all fighting for the opportunity to broadcast her sex transformation process in (surprise!) a reality TV show.
The TV executives, who are currently battling it out for rights to Chaz’s transformation, all agree that Bono has generated a significant cross-gender appeal. When Sonny’s 1998 funeral was aired on the networks, its huge ratings were attributed to Chastity’s appearance.
But hey, we don’t begrudge Chaz for airing his gender reassignment process on the airwaves. If Katie Couric could broadcast her colonoscopy on national television, Chaz Bono has every right to showcase his sex change. And who knows, perhaps the televised process would help the LGBT community earn more rights.
