Euphoria star Hunter Schafer is a popular figure within the LGBTQ+ community known for her activism for gay rights.
Given her involvement in lobbying for gay rights and her role as a trans character, Jules Vaughn, in Euphoria, her transition journey has been highly publicized.
She first appeared in the public limelight at age 17 when she became the youngest plaintiff in a lawsuit challenging North Carolina’s House Bill 2 (HB2).
The law banned trans people from using public bathrooms that didn’t align with the gender listed on their birth certificate.
The Story Behind Schafer’s Transition
From childhood, Hunter knew she was a girl despite being born a male to parents Katy and Mac Schafer.
In an interview with North Carolina Public Radio, Katy revealed that she started noticing that Hunter, at age 2, was drawn to things that would interest girls rather than what males liked at that age.
She eventually came out as gay to her parents in seventh grade.
Despite coming out, Schafer had conflicted feelings about undergoing puberty as a male, and it was at that time she met a community that educated her on what she was feeling.
She came to learn that she was having gender dysphoria—an intense discomfort arising from the misalignment between her gender identity and the sex assigned to her at birth.
Hunter made peace with the idea that she was not meant to be a boy.
Discovering the online transgender community and finding role models in the media helped her recognize and embrace her identity. It made it easier for her to start transitioning.
In ninth grade, she eventually came out as trans to her parents, who had different reactions to her announcement.
HRT Journey
At 14, Hunter began Hormone Replacement Therapy (HRT) essential in the transitioning journey.
Before the HRT, she had begun experimenting by wearing makeup while at school but wiping it off before she came home.
HRT involves taking estrogen alone or sometimes with testosterone blockers to induce physical changes that align with a person’s gender identity.
For Schafer, this treatment helped her develop more feminine physical traits, which reduced her gender dysphoria.
She recalled while in an interview with the New York Times that before she was allowed to transition, she had to meet a therapist.
The intensive therapy sessions were a means to confirm that she indeed felt like a female.
It was a hard time for her because she did not believe someone else’s opinion mattered, while she was sure of what she felt.
Life after Hunter’s transition: advocacy and social impact
Hunter Schafer has used her platform to advocate for transgender rights and access to healthcare, including HRT.
According to Rolling Stones, she would rather not be labelled as an activist but a transgender woman who happens to be famous.
Through her activism and openness, Schafer has continuously inspired countless people, encouraging them to embrace their identities while fighting for broader societal acceptance and equal rights.
She hopes that, eventually, people will move past her transition to allow her to be just a girl.