The TLC show I Am Jazz went out of its way to smack non-transgender viewers in the July 26 episode titled "Face Your Demons." The highlight was a Facebook Live chat with Jazz and two other transgender teens which was made in the name of education and support for others.
After hearing the story of Lynn, a transgender girl who does not have any support from her parents because they believe that God created her in a certain way, Jazz decides that Lynn’s parents are “denying who Lynn really is.” In order to reach out to other trans youth, Jazz, Lynn and Noelle put together a time for a Facebook Live chat. Jazz adds the bonus of an open phone line so viewers can call in with questions without mentioning that to the others until they begin to go live with the chat. Noelle’s mother accompanies her to Jazz’s house and Lynn joins them all there. Noelle’s mother and Jeanette sit off to the other side of the room to monitor the situation.
It is understandable to be concerned about school kids and young adults being bullied but it is also a very predictable part of growing up for lots of people. Have you ever been around middle schoolers or just teenage girls? It can get ugly. Also, social media is downright brutal in perfectly normal situations, much less opening yourself up to a live chat to talk about a lifestyle only a minute portion of the general population lives. These three teens are all boys who are/have transitioned to living as girls.
During the chat, a caller talks about bullying, which she says mostly comes from adults and not from other kids and then says, “Adults are stuck in their belief system.” Jeanette chimes in to the camera that it is adults who are concerned about bathrooms. Yeah, those people and their pesky “beliefs.” And, right on cue, a man calls in and calls them freaks.
Jazz: We're having an open discussion about bullying, because as three trans people, it clearly affects our lives and we're also willing to go beyond the discussion of bullying in general. So, my name is Jazz and then I have my friend Lynn here and Noelle.
Noelle and Lynn: Hi.
Jazz: I guess I will share that most of the bullying that I face is online, cyberbullying. On social media, I see a lot of these comments that are just so negative, so cruel, and are really hurtful. I try not to look at them, but, you know, at the end of the day, they're still there. It shows me that there's more work to be done and that society isn't fully accepting people like us who are transgender, who just happen to be transgender.
Noelle: I also have faced struggles. One day on Instagram, I did see a picture of me with a very rude caption. At that point, I was suffering from very bad depression. That honestly hit me very hard. And I guess that's what we're here to share today.
Jazz: Oh, we have a caller. Hello?
Caller: Most of the bullying I face is often from adults, actually. Kids are more open to change and new ideas, but adults, they're a little bit stuck in terms of their belief system.
Jazz: So, adults have bullied me, and it's sometimes intimidating.
Jeanette: The adults are the ones that set the rules, not the kids. You can't use the bathroom. That's an adult rule, not a child rule. You know, little, tiny Jazz, when she was playing soccer in the beginning, these are all adults saying, "You have to sit on the sidelines and can't play."
Jazz: One of our first questions is from Sarah and she wants to know how we can support our friends when they are transitioning if they don't know what pronouns to use? You guys have any thoughts on that?
Lynn: I feel like you should ask them. Like, I mean, asking's always okay for somebody. At least you're acknowledging them and telling them like, "Oh, you know, how do I do this, so I don't, like, offend you in a way?" Yeah.
Jazz: Oh, ok. People are curious, at what age did you two know that you were trans?
Noelle: I knew ever since I could differentiate boy from girl. So, I-I internalized that a lot, I pushed it away. I eventually acknowledged that I was transgender when I was 13 years old, but I feel that I did know all my life.
Jazz: How about you, Lynn?
Lynn: The time that I acknowledged that I was transgender was around the ages between 10 and 12, when I was around in middle school. So, I had these friends who would -- like, we'd always do feminine things, I enjoyed it. Like, I thoroughly enjoyed, you know, being more feminine. That's who I was as a person. Yeah.
Jazz: All right, we have a call from Denmark. Oh, my God. Hello.
Danish caller: Asking about surgery.
Jazz: -Bottom surgery. -Bottom surgery. -Bottom surgery. -Let's talk about it. I mean, normally, this is pretty personal, but since we want to try to be as educational as possible, I'll say for me, I have been going on a few consultations now, and it's been really, really exciting. You know, I've wanted this my whole life, so it's really cool to just, like, finally embark upon this journey.
Noelle: For me, I'm not -- I'm not quite sure yet, but it's best to learn about everything that you might do, so that when you do want to follow through with the procedure, you'll be prepared and you'll be ready for it.
Lynn: I have a mother who doesn't really accept me and neither a father, so my social worker at school, she's actually helping me with my transition. Like, she's giving me the contacts, who to call, and, like, some people who could help me out and, like, sign me off for hormones when I turn 18.
Jazz: All right, so we have a caller. Hello, new person.
Man: Hi. Am I online?
Jazz: You are online.
Noelle: Yes, you are.
Lynn: Yeah.
Man: Yeah, I just -- I want to say, I think this is all basically just one big load of crap. Y'all are just trying to get attention. I mean, we all have problems. Just, you know, cut the crap, man up. Of course, you're going to be getting bullied. You guys are just freaks.
Jazz disconnected the phone connection at that point so she could respond to the audience, not to him. Jazz wants the world to know she’s mature and can handle it all but scenes like this show she hasn’t learned yet how to respond to criticism.
This episode included a memorial service commemorating the 17th annual Transgender Day of Remembrance. Jazz, her parents and her grandparents attended, with Jazz speaking, naturally. This teen definitely fancies herself the voice of transgenders.
Next week should be interesting to see how Jazz handles herself in an appearance on the Tomi Lahren show – the preview for next week shows Tomi extending the invitation to come on and debate her about transgenderism. Stay tuned.
