OlderRowan Blanchard Interviews Jazz Jennings For 'Dazed' Mag
Jazz Jennings takes the fourth Spring cover for Dazed magazine.
Rowan Blanchard spoke with the 15-year-old transgender reality star for her feature in the glossy mag, where she opens up about high school, the impact of her reality show, and more. Check it:
On being treated differently after the show: “At first, some people were a bit like, ‘Ohh, there’s Jazz, the one with the show,’ and treated me differently. Either people wanted to be my friend or they wanted to avoid me, depending on the person. Kids can be annoying. Especially teenagers, oh my gosh. They can be cruel.”
On the impact of the show and its subject: “I hear a lot of incredible stories. People have said that because of my show, and because of me putting myself out there and my family sharing our story, that we’ve been able to have a huge impact in their lives. In some cases, they say that we actually saved their lives. That without us being there they wouldn’t be alive today. That’s just the most empowering thing to hear, because it completely motivates me to carry on sharing my story, despite my doubts. It encourages me to continue putting myself out there if it can benefit others.”
On her trouble with soccer: “Yeah, [I loved it] right from the start. I played my first soccer game when I was five years old�I remember I lost my first tooth on that day. But when I was eight I was banned from playing girls’ soccer. They wouldn’t let me play on the girls’ team because they thought I had an advantage. So for two years I had to sit on the sidelines while my team got to play soccer. I moved to a boys’ soccer team because I was allowed to do that, but when I played with the boys I felt miserable. It was just awful. I wouldn’t even try on the field when I played with the boys. And this whole time my parents were fighting for my right to play travel soccer. After we fought a two year-long battle, the US Soccer Federation passed a trans-inclusive policy that allows all transgender players to play soccer.
Read more of Rowan‘s interview with Jazz on Dazed.com!
