Jazz Jennings: Voice for LGBTQ Youth

Jazz Jennings: Voice for LGBTQ Youth — page 1 — Introduction Jazz's Story Ordinary people can lead remarkable lives Often they do so just by being themselves Everyone has a tale to tell or a story to share Some tales are of heroic deeds such as saving people in danger Other stories are about seemingly simple acts such as telling people who you really are Jazz Jennings was born a boy but always knew she was really a girl She just had to let everybody else know of her identity But that was no small feat What Is a Biography A biography is the story of a person’s life and experiences We read biographies to learn about another person’s life and thoughts Biographies can be based on many sources of information Primary sources include a person’s own words or pictures Secondary sources include friends family media and research Jazz has never been afraid to live her life as the girl she always knew she was 4

Jazz Jennings: Voice for LGBTQ Youth — page 2 — Deﬁning Herself Jazz is transgender When she was born she was considered a boy but that is not who she is Jazz began acting as her true self a girl at a very young age Her everyday courage and conviction to live life honestly have made her a role model a rights activist and a television personality THINK ABOUT IT What makes an ordinary person extraordinary Read Jazz’s story and think about the qualities that make her amazing and remarkable By sharing her story Jazz Jennings has become one of the youngest publicly known transgender figures 5

Jazz Jennings: Voice for LGBTQ Youth — page 3 — 1 Chapter Trapped in the Wrong Body When babies are born we label or assign them as female or male We do this based on doctors understanding of their body parts or their visible genitalia This is called their sex Gender is not the same as sex Gender refers to the patterns of behavior or other things that we think are appropriate for men or women to do The stated and unstated rules of gender are usually determined by the society we live in For example in North America girls often wear skirts and dresses and boys wear pants But in Scotland men and boys traditionally wear a type of skirt called a kilt 6

Jazz Jennings: Voice for LGBTQ Youth — page 4 — Gender Identity Sex and gender may seem to be simple categories But as we learn more about ourselves these strict groups can be confusing For example there are more than just two options for both sex and gender People can be born male female or intersexed which means they belong to both sexes People can also identify or see themselves as one or more genders Gender identity is about how people think of themselves For example a person can be born male but think of themselves as female They can be born female male or intersex and identify themselves as all any or none of the genders Sometimes people express or show their gender identity in visible ways such as wearing clothing considered traditionally male or female 7

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