Sunday January 17th, 1999. Toccoa, Georgia. 53-year-old white transgender man Robert Eads was discovered dead in his nursing home following complications from ovarian cancer. He had spent three years fighting a legal battle against medical discrimination.
Robert Christopher Eads was born December 18, 1945 and grew up in Toccoa, Georgia. He began his gender journey circa 1983, at the age of 37, after divorcing his former spouse who identified as a cisgender man. They had two sons, who– with time– became affirming of their dad’s gender journey.
Robert navigated his gender journey for the next 15 years, including starting medical transition via hormone replacement rherapy (in the form of Testosterone) as well as gender-affirming surgery, known as Chest Masculinization.
In 1996, Robert met and fell in love with Kate Davis, a cisgender white woman. Around that time, he was diagnosed with ovarian cancer– after being rushed to the hospital with persistent bleeding.
When Robert was diagnosed, he was met with multiple refusals regarding his cancer care. It took until 1997 for the Medical College of Georgia to finally accept him as candidate for treatment. The cancer had already spread to other parts of his body.
During his time at the Medical College of Georgia, Robert was subjected to vigorous and aggressive treatments such as radiation therapy and many painful surgical procedures. They were insufficient to address the severity of his condition–exacerbated by the time he spent untreated. His gender and healthcare journey garnered so much national attention, a documentary was filmed about his experiences, titled Southern Comfort.
Southern Comfort began filming in 1998, before Robert succumbed to his disease on Sunday, January 17, 1999. He was in a nursing home in Toccoa, Georgia– only 53 years old. He is survived by two sons, grandchildren, a former spouse, and a loving partner.
Robert’s hateful homicide resulted from stigma, medical refusal, and essentially too little too late, leaving him in extreme southern discomfort.
Learn more about Robert’s hateful homicide on his upcoming November, Season 5 Episode 4.
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A Hateful Homicide Season 5 launched Saturday August 5, 2023 at 12pm (PST) and is available on Audible, iHeartRadio, Amazon Music, Apple and Spotify Podcasts. ahatefulhomicide.net
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