[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 162 (2016), Part 4]
[House]
[Page 5273]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




                             ``I AM JAZZ''

  The SPEAKER pro tempore. The Chair recognizes the gentlewoman from 
California (Ms. Speier) for 5 minutes.
  Ms. SPEIER. Mr. Speaker, all across the country today, teachers, 
librarians, and parents will be reading the book ``I Am Jazz,'' a 
children's book about transgender youth, co-written by Jazz Jennings, 
pictured here, and Jessica Herthel.
  Last year, legal threats from the anti-LGBTQ hate group forced a 
school in Wisconsin to cancel plans to read this book to support a 
transgender student. The local community rallied, holding a reading at 
the library that drew more than 600 attendees in support of the 
student.
  Now this is a movement, with readings across the country to increase 
understanding and to show young people that they are welcomed and 
loved.
  I am proud to join these readers today from the House floor. Now I am 
going to read this book, ``I Am Jazz.''

       I am Jazz. For as long as I can remember, my favorite color 
     has been pink. My second favorite color is silver, and my 
     third favorite color is green.
       Here are some of my other favorite things: dancing, 
     singing, back flips, drawing, soccer, swimming, makeup, and 
     pretending I'm a pop star.
       Most of all, I love mermaids. Sometimes I even wear a 
     mermaid tail into the pool.
       My best friends are Samantha and Casey. We always have fun 
     together. We like high heels and princess gowns or cartwheels 
     and trampolines.
       But I am not exactly like Samantha and Casey. I have a 
     girl's brain, but a boy body. This is called transgender. I 
     was born this way.
       When I was very little and my mom would say, ``You're such 
     a good boy,'' I would say, ``No, mama. Good girl.''

                              {time}  1015

       At first, my family was confused. They always thought of me 
     as a boy. As I got a little older, I hardly ever played with 
     trucks or tools or superheroes, only princesses and mermaid 
     costumes. My brothers told me that that was girl stuff. I 
     kept right on playing.
       My sister says I was always talking to her about my girl 
     thoughts and my girl dreams and how one day I would be a 
     beautiful lady. She would giggle and say, ``You are a funny 
     kid.''
       Sometimes my parents let me wear my sister's dresses around 
     the house, but whenever we went out, I had to put on my boy 
     clothes again. That made me mad. Still, I never gave up 
     trying to convince them. Pretending I was a boy felt like 
     telling a lie.
       Then one amazing day, everything changed. Mom and dad took 
     me to meet a new doctor who asked me lots and lots of 
     questions. Afterwards, the doctor spoke to my parents, and I 
     heard the word ``transgender'' for the very first time. That 
     night at bedtime, my parents both hugged me and said, ``We 
     understand now. Be who you are. We love you no matter what.''
       That made me smile and smile and smile. Mom and dad told me 
     I could start wearing girl clothes to school and growing my 
     hair long. They even let me change my name to Jazz. Being 
     Jazz felt much more like being me. Mom said that being Jazz 
     would make me different from the other kids in school, but 
     that being different is okay. ``What is important,'' she 
     said, ``is that I am happy with who I am.''
       Being Jazz caused some other people to be confused, too, 
     like the teachers at school. At the beginning of school, they 
     wanted me to use the boys' bathroom and play in the boys' gym 
     class, but that didn't make me feel normal at all.
       I was so happy when the teachers changed their minds. I 
     can't imagine not playing on the same team with Casey and 
     Samantha. Even today there are kids who tease me or call me 
     by a boy's name or ignore me altogether. This makes me feel 
     crummy. Then I remember that the kids who get to know me 
     usually want to be my friend. They say that I am one of the 
     nicest girls in school.
       I don't mind being different. Different is special. I think 
     what matters most is what a person is like inside. And 
     inside, I am happy. I am having fun. I am proud. I am Jazz.

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