Transgender woman opens up about moment her husband’s parents found out she was born a man… after their wedding
She grew up in a crime-ridden area of the Dominican Republic... where being gay was NOT accepted
A TRANSGENDER woman has spoken about the moment her parents-in-law found out she was born a man, months after she had already married their son.
Spa worker Daliah Husu was born Luis Miguel Morris, in the Dominican Republic, and had a difficult childhood in an area full of drug dealers.
According to Daliah, criminals ‘slaughtering their rivals’ was common in the neighbourhood, where she lived with her grandmother.
Now living in Atlanta, Georgia, the glamorous 36-year-old is happily married to Ruben Husu, a 25-year-old stockbroker – but it’s not been an easy ride.
Speaking about her in-laws, Daliah: “When I first met them, Ruben and I decided not to tell them. We didn’t feel it was anyone else’s business. But it’s no longer a secret.”
Daliah was just four years old when she realised she was different from other boys – and loved dressing up as a lady when playing with her cousins.
She said: “My aunt used to call me ‘little woman’. It was her way of saying: ‘It’s ok, there’s nothing wrong with it’.”
In 1988, she re-located to America, where her mum was already living, with her younger brother Alfredo.
Daliah said she experimented with her mum’s clothes and make-up after school for six years, adding: “I’d stand in front of the mirror, sometimes for hours.
“I knew who I was meant to be but I didn’t know the term ‘transgender’ so assumed I was gay.
"There was no way I could be myself in Santo Domingo. I would've been subjected to violence - LGBT people are mistreated and even killed."
When she turned 18, Daliah came out and started dressing as a woman in the evenings.
She said: “I loved the attention from men and was attracted to them.
“But it was only when I met girls in transition that I understood my identity - that there was a difference between being transgender and being gay.
“These girls had breasts and hips and I knew I wanted to look like that.
“I was 25 when I began my journey. I never saw a psychologist - I just knew how I felt.
“I grew out my hair and took hormones. I wore tight jeans and women’s tops as I wasn’t comfortable wearing a dress. But I started painting my nails before I took that leap.”
At the time, Daliah was working as a nightclub entertainer in Miami and studying fashion at university – and she spent hours researching medical grants to fund her surgery.
Luckily, an ex-boyfriend offered to pay £11,000 for breast implants and gender reassignment – and Daliah flew to Thailand for her secret operation.
While there, she worked as a drag artist in gay clubs and managed to raise a further £3,000 for chin and bottom implants.
Daliah said: “I’d lost all my fear - the fear of rejection from my family and friends and if I’d ever find work.
“I’d been trying to find ways to make it happen so when he offered to pay I thought, ‘this is really it, this is my time.’ I felt my prayers had been answered.”
She returned to college as a woman, and her family were more than accepting of Daliah’s decision.
She said: “My mother hadn’t seen me for six months but when we met she said, ‘You look beautiful.’
“I was shocked because we’ve never been close. I felt hopeful of a reconciliation but sadly we’re more distant.
“However my grandmother embraced me and said: ‘My beautiful child, my granddaughter’.
"My family’s reaction was positive but they had tons of questions at first.”
Daliah had given up on hoping of finding romantic love, until she met Ruben at a nightclub in 2012.
She said: “I craved commitment. I wanted someone who wouldn’t hide me, who didn’t want me for a one night stand - I wanted someone to build a life with me.
“I was standoffish at first but he was persistent. I agreed to a date and we clicked. I saw he had a real interest in me.
“I wanted to take things slowly but things rapidly progressed so I told him about my past.
"At first he was shocked. He said, ‘Really?’ He was in disbelief. I always assumed he knew. But he wasn’t angry or upset. He just wanted to know more.
“I expected him to stop answering my texts but he made the effort to come and see me. He was determined to make our relationship work.”
The couple got married last September, but Ruben’s family only discovered the truth when Daliah published her book I Am Woman.
She said: “I’m not perfect. I have insecurities and when people stare at me I feel fragile.
"I can feel them scrutinising and analysing me but I try and maintain my focus.”
Despite her happy private life, Daliah is still unnerved by the conservative beliefs of some people in the US.
She said: “People aren’t very open to LGBT people here.
"We live on the Bible belt and some people are restricted by their beliefs.
“Recently the KKK (Ku Klux Klan) rallied near the city and said LGBT people were an abomination.
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“There are a lot of scares, more so than anywhere I’ve lived before but luckily I’ve never had a problem here.”
Daliah said her husband fully supports her decision to share her story.
She added: “When I started writing the book it was in the back of my mind, whether he was happy about it.
"After reading each chapter he’d ask, ‘Do you really want to talk about this?’ but I had to share it otherwise my story would be incomplete.
"He has been very encouraging and supportive. We want to buy a home and we’ve talked about having a family.
“But bringing children into the picture is the biggest thing we could do. For now, dogs will have to do - and maybe a cat!”