Hey everyone! Today, I’m excited to share with you a spotlight post featuring Jazz Jennings, a teen trans rights advocate and author of BEING JAZZ: My Life as a (Transgender) Teen (June 7, 2016). Jazz has also been named the latest author ambassador for the newly relaunched Read Proud Listen Proud.
Read Proud Listen Proud was introduced in June 2015 as an online resource for kids and teens, as well as their parents, teachers and librarians, to find LGBTQ literature that encourages understanding and acceptance, celebrating everyone for who they are through the power of storytelling. The site now features fresh content, including an interview with Jennings filmed while she was in the recording studio narrating BEING JAZZ and additional title recommendations.
“Jazz Jennings is one of the youngest champions of transgender equality.” —O, The Oprah Magazine
“A role model for teens everywhere.” —Seventeen.com on Jazz Jennings
Teen activist and trailblazer Jazz Jennings—named one of “The 25 Most Influential Teens” of the year by Time—shares her very public transgender journey, as she inspires people to accept the differences in others while they embrace their own truths.
Jazz Jennings is one of the youngest and most prominent voices in the national discussion about gender identity. At the age of five, Jazz transitioned to life as a girl, with the support of her parents. A year later, her parents allowed her to share her incredible journey in her first Barbara Walters interview, aired at a time when the public was much less knowledgeable or accepting of the transgender community. This groundbreaking interview was followed over the years by other high-profile interviews, a documentary, the launch of her YouTube channel, a picture book, and her own reality TV series—I Am Jazz—making her one of the most recognizable activists for transgender teens, children, and adults.
In her remarkable memoir, Jazz reflects on these very public experiences and how they have helped shape the mainstream attitude toward the transgender community. But it hasn’t all been easy. Jazz has faced many challenges, bullying, discrimination, and rejection, yet she perseveres as she educates others about her life as a transgender teen. Through it all, her family has been beside her on this journey, standing together against those who don’t understand the true meaning of tolerance and unconditional love. Now Jazz must learn to navigate the physical, social, and emotional upheavals of adolescence—particularly high school—complicated by the unique challenges of being a transgender teen. Making the journey from girl to woman is never easy—especially when you began your life in a boy’s body.
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About Jazz Jennings
Jazz Jennings is a trans girl, YouTube celebrity, spokesmodel, activist, and co-author of the picture book I Am Jazz. She has a docu-series about her life also called I Am Jazz on TLC, which started airing in July 2015. She was named to Time’s “Most Influential Teens” list two years in a row, was one of Huffington Post’s “14 Most Fearless Teens,” and was the youngest person ever featured on Out’s “Out100,” as well as on Advocate’s “40 Under 40” list. In 2014, she was named a Human Rights Campaign Youth Ambassador and received LogoTV’s Youth Trailblazer Award. Jazz also hosts a series of videos about her life on YouTube and is one of the faces of Clean & Clear. You can follow her on Facebook, on Instagram, and on Twitter, or subscribe to her YouTube channel.
