Tonight on a new episode of "Survivor: Game Changers" everyone was shocked when Zeke Smith was outed as transgender at tribal council. Nobody knew that Zeke was transgender and this is his second time playing the game. Zeke Smith actually spoke out to People about why he didn't want the world to know about this and how it feels for it to come out this way.
Why was Zeke Smith quiet about the real him?
Zeke Smith is now revealing that he didn't want to be known as the first transgender person on "Survivor." Instead, he just wanted to play his game and be known for his gameplay.
This is actually Zeke's second season on "Survivor," so it is really surprising that this didn't come out sooner.
Zeke Smith went on to share more of his thoughts about why he didn't tell anyone. He said, "I’m not ashamed of being trans, but I didn’t want that to be my story. I just wanted to go out on an adventure and play a great game. I just wanted to be known for my game.” Now that the world knows, Zeke can be known for both. He has already been able to prove that he can do a great job on "Survivor."
He grew up in Oklahoma, but didn't stay there for college. Zeke actually went to Harvard and studied religion. During his time there, that is when Zeke transitioned. Now the Entire World knows because during tribal council tonight competitor Jeff Varner decided to tell everyone about it.
He seemed to think that everyone should know that Zeke wasn't totally honest with them about everything. The team actually stood up for him, though.
So far, it is unknown how many people on the show knew the truth about Zeke Smith. He might have told a lot of them or maybe only a few of them knew the truth about Zeke. One person who knew had the idea to call him out tonight and shock the entire world.
It really is surprising to everyone that this didn't come out during the last season he was on.
There has been so much talk about people who are transgender lately with the transition of Caitlyn Jenner and also the reality show "I Am Jazz" on TLC. It could have brought more awareness if Zeke had talked about it on the show, but he just wasn't ready to do it.
Now everyone knows the truth about him and this may change the rest of the season of "Survivor."
Were you shocked to hear that Zeke Smith of "Survivor: Game Changers" is transgender? What did you think of the way that it came out tonight? Sound off in the comments section below on your thoughts, and don't miss the new episodes of "Survivor" on Wednesday nights on ABC.
