Jazz Jennings’ Sincere Taimi Talk on Transgender Issues, Being in Spotlight, and Weight Loss Journey
Last week’s Taimi Talks was the second installment of the in-app livestreaming event launched in October 2020 by the world’s largest LGBTQ+ platform. The star-studded lineup of Taimi Talks 2.0 featured five prominent LGBTQ+ celebrities, with their streams’ topics ranging from lighthearted fun musicals to hard-hitting subjects like addiction and transgender issues.
Among them was Jazz Jennings, one of the youngest, most outspoken, and well-known transgender people in the U.S., alongside her brother Sander, a creator, entrepreneur, and social advocate. Taimi picked some of the most gripping things shared by the siblings during their 30-minute Q&A session for you!
Jazz opened the conversation with the audience by introducing Sander, who, aside from being an outspoken ally and a recent Master’s degree graduate from The University of Florida, is a “mega athlete”. “He’s an amazing, amazing athlete. He was the kicker for the high school football team, but he tore his ACL and it ruined his chances of playing college football. But [Sander is] just great at every sport”.
To make the experience as genuine as possible, Jazz & Sander prepared a bowl with fan questions and answered them in random order. The first one got straight to business — one of Taimi users wondered if Jazz was going to have more surgeries and if her transition was complete. “Plain and simple: no, I’m not going to have any more surgeries. I had a total of three surgeries and I feel happy with the results and the way everything is now. I feel confident in my body,” Jazz responded.
Jazz also specified that sharing her journey and being in the spotlight is not new to her and Sander: “Our family first appeared in the media when I was 6 years old. So I’ve been in the spotlight my whole life: sharing our stories, sharing my transition, my experience as a transgender person. And, you know, throughout the years, our experience just snowballed until we ended up having a TV show about our entire life. And it’s been going on for six seasons.”
Next up, Sander and Jazz shared some college stories, mentioning that Sander has recently obtained a Master’s degree in Digital Strategy, while Jazz graduated with a Bachelor’s degree. Did you know that Jazz was a Valedictorian?
The discussion also covered some of the harder questions considering a hurtful topic for most people: online hatred.
“Remember, the haters are coming from a place of hate, and we’re coming from a place of love. So anyone who’s watching this, whoever deals with hate for being who you are — don’t let those haters bring you down! Just rise above it and learn from it. I’ve learned a lot from the people who have spread the most hate to me. In fact, it just motivates me even more! It just shows me that there’s more work that needs to be done to make this world a better place. We’re fighting for a world of equality where everyone is treated equally. Where all people can be who they are without a fear of being judged. The haters might try to bring us down, but I think we’re stronger. I think love is stronger and is going to persevere in the end. Love always wins!” Jazz passionately stated.
Jazz also shared a more intimate and personal side of her life with Taimi Talks viewers, discussing her weight loss journey: “I have been struggling a lot with my binge-eating disorder. It’s something I don’t talk about enough on my social media, but it’s something I want to discuss and share more of. If you go through my photos, you could tell that I’ve gained almost like 90 pounds in the past year and a half. It’s really hard for me to share this right now and I’m definitely being a little vulnerable, but it’s been really difficult having this extra weight on. I think I look beautiful in every shape and size. But … I just don’t feel as healthy as I want to feel. I [think] a lot of people will relate to this. But Sander, my other siblings, and my parents are doing everything in their power to help me on my weight loss journey, and I have so much faith in myself that I’m going to break free and be healthy. I have a huge support team, and I know I could work through that.”
Jazz touched a bit more on her transgender experience and what she thinks is the hardest part about it. The issue is something Taimi fights to change, and Jazz believes that society isn’t fully accepting of transgender community. “There’s so much injustice, discrimination, and inequality the transgender community faces simply because we are trans, it’s just unfair. It’s sad that we live in a world where so many people are still treated unequally for things that they can’t control, for being who they are.”
Sander summed up their Taimi Talks stream by urging allies to speak up and educate everyone on the importance of supporting LGBTQ+ community.
“Don’t forget to listen and share love! At the end of the day, if you’re continuing to show that love, you can help everyone be better. Educate yourself and your friends — if any of you guys are allies, I strongly encourage you to give them some of those tips. Just keep being yourself. Your true, authentic self, spread love. You know, sometimes it’s hard, sometimes we’re in a darker place. But there’s always an eternal source of love, so share it with everyone!”
About Taimi: Taimi is the world’s largest LGBTQ+ platform that features a social network, dating app, and streaming. Taimi offers the safest and most secure user experience on the market — with its several verification layers, 24/7 profile moderation, PIN/Fingerprint/Face ID, and live support. Taimi is the Home of Diversity, and the platform’s main mission is to make the lives of LGBTQ+ people better by creating a safe environment with zero tolerance for judgment, discrimination, hate, or aggression.
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Jazz Jennings’ Sincere Taimi Talk on Transgender Issues, Being in Spotlight, and Weight Loss… was originally published in Taimi Lifestyle & Community on Medium, where people are continuing the conversation by highlighting and responding to this story.
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