I Am Jazz (2015) s03e08 Episode Script
In the Line of Fire
Previously on "I Am Jazz" I signed us up for this scuba course.
With the kids up at college, very rarely do we ever just spend time as a family.
Dad! Sorry.
On a scale of one to 10, with 10 being somebody super coordinated, I'm like a 3.
5.
I'm on the search for America's next top vagina.
I've always dreamed about having this procedure done.
We don't have the raw materials we need.
I think they're going to have a significant challenge with creating your vaginal canal.
Where are we going? How do we make our final decision? We need to have another consultation.
It's not really the drag queens they're worried about in North Carolina.
It's the creeps that will use it to self-identify as whatever gender will get them closer to their victims.
I'm not overly ecstatic about putting Jazz in the firing line of a shock jock.
Hi, I'm Shane.
It's nice to meet you.
Jazz, Shane is here.
In the past, dating has always been a weird, awkward situation.
Where'd she go? With Shane, I feel like I can just have a good time and be myself.
We should do something again, sometime.
Yeah.
16 years ago, I was assigned male at birth, but inside, I always knew I was a girl.
I have a girl brain and a boy body.
Being transgender hasn't been easy This is definitely not, like, a straightforward case.
I don't think you have any option for vaginoplasty.
I had a lot of fun.
Have a great night.
- That sounds like a date.
- It's not a date! but it's made me who I am.
I am Jazz.
Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah.
Who's that coming through the door? Oh! You're my number-one boy.
Does that mean the date didn't go so well? No, no.
So, the jumping thing.
The jumping thing? - Was it fun? - It was fun.
I still got it.
I may be slightly overweight, but I can still do it.
And did you have fun with, like, hanging out with Shane? Yeah.
It was fun.
Would you hang out with Shane again? I don't know.
What? Jazz, I don't understand you.
You go on a double date.
There's a guy that you actually think is cute.
You really liked his personality, and it's all about that.
Why would you say no? I don't know.
I don't know, Mom.
It's so frustrating, for me, because Jazz was really looking forward to this date, and she really liked Shane.
I was like, "what happened?" I just want to know where you're coming from 'cause I'm trying to figure you out 'cause I want to help you in the love department, but I can't if I can't figure you out.
Well, it's just that I'm kind of limited in what I could do, currently.
I could have oral sex with a male or a female, or I could receive, which also does not sound appealing at all.
I don't have the body of a biological female, so I think that hinders me because I feel uncomfortable being in a sexual relationship with someone because I don't feel comfortable with my own body.
Ah.
I definitely am interested in Shane, but if someone that I like is ready to have a relationship with me, then I do feel like it's kind of letting them down that I'm not ready for sex yet.
That makes sense a lot.
That really makes sense.
You don't want to kind of put yourself out there too much.
You don't want to take it past a certain line.
It just limits my sexual options.
But just because you go on a date with somebody doesn't mean that it has to be sexualized.
Jazz is putting the cart before the horse.
She's worrying about the next phase of relationships and intimacy when, right now, she's just on her first date, so I just need her to slow down.
You could just kiss somebody and snuggle.
And it doesn't have to go any further.
There are people that are virgins at 30.
You are ridiculous.
I do want a sexual relationship in the future, and after all of these consultations, I can't imagine myself having sex without having a beautiful vagina.
- Boo! - Oh, hi! - Hello.
- That scared me! - Hi.
- How are you? Jazz and I are meeting with Jessica to go over every possible scenario before our debate or conversation with Tomi Lahren.
We just want to make sure we're prepared for this interview.
How have you been? I haven't seen you in weeks.
Busy.
We're going to San Francisco and then Texas with you, and then we're going to Key Largo, scuba diving.
What's in San Francisco? San Francisco is Dr.
Marci Bowers.
What is that a trip for? Well, that is for a consult for Jazz's bottom surgery.
Wow.
Before we began this whole process, I wasn't sure what we were going to do.
I knew we were going to go on a few consultations.
I wasn't sure how many, but we've had three different consultations, and none of the doctors can give Jazz the surgery she wants, so we need a fourth consultation.
I'm so grateful that you were able to squeeze - in this Dallas trip.
- Right.
I mean, how do you feel about going on the Tomi Lahren show? I feel like it's really important because her audience hasn't been exposed to someone like me who is transgender and our perspective of the argument.
I hope that we can address some of the things that she said 'cause they were very hurtful.
Hell, why don't we all just start self-identifying for perks? Tomorrow, I'll park in a handicapped spot and self-identify as someone with disabilities and the next day, maybe, get a spray tan and self-identify as another race, so I can reap those benefits, too.
I mean, was it a hard sell to get your dad to agree to this? Not too bad.
- Really? - No, no.
Is he softening up over all these years? You know what it is? She's held her own.
She's proven, in the past, that she's got what it takes to go up against somebody who's bigoted, and with you by her side, you know, being that you are Well, we'll both be there, and we'll protect you.
Well I don't think I'm gonna do it.
It's not because I'm afraid of Tomi.
It's because - Wait, did you know this? - Yeah, I knew.
You didn't send me a warning that this is happening? This is her heart.
This is who she is.
She's the transgender person.
I want her to talk about her experiences.
I don't want to be like, "when she was 5 years old" Well, your experience is valuable.
There is a good reason why I don't want to be there.
Jazz is the one who is affected the most.
She's the one that's transgender, and I want people to hear her voice.
As Jazz gets older, people aren't going to be as warm and fuzzy towards her because she won't be a child anymore, so she's gonna have to learn how to put the boxing gloves on and fight for what she believes in.
Let's make sure we're You and I, now that your mom is not going to be there That you and I are on the same page in terms of what we want to call Tomi out on.
Okay.
The disabled reference that she had, that's completely making a joke out of what it means to be transgender.
It's delegitimizing everything that we've fought for, like, our whole lives.
Yeah, or when she says, "anyone can just dress up on any given day and just decide that they're a woman that day.
" We need to address those, for sure.
Basically, this comes down to what her opinion is versus what the facts are.
Yeah.
New reality of just saying something and having someone repeat it, and at that point, it becomes fact needs to be called out.
Right now, there's this culture of no one really knowing what the facts are or knowing whom to believe.
There are so many different news sources and so many different voices speaking out on these topics that, if we allow the misinformation to spread, then it becomes harder to debunk these myths that spring up around kids like Jazz.
I hope that she listens to what we say, though.
But even if Tomi doesn't listen, her audience might.
Yeah.
That's true.
You know, she can say, "I think other people's rights are more valuable," and then we would say, "we're not asking for special rights or extra rights.
We're asking for equal rights.
" Just equal, equal.
What are you going to do if Tomi becomes a little aggressive? We could just stop, you know? We could end it right then and there.
We could just take off our mics, get up and be like, "you know what? This is We're not going to dispute with you.
" I have never really been on a show where someone has completely opposing opinions from myself, but I think that a lot of people don't really understand us, and we're not gonna create change in this world unless we have direct conversations with one another.
I mean, let's go into it assuming the be We'll give her the benefit of the doubt.
I mean, why would she invite us onto her show if she wasn't willing to let us speak? Knock, knock.
Hey, what are you doing? You're supposed to be packing.
Jazz.
He's not coming to San Francisco.
I don't even have a suitcase, though.
Ask Daddy to bring one in.
Dad, do you have my suitcase? Which one is it? The, like, hot-pink one.
I hope Dr.
Marci Bowers will look at Jazz and know exactly what's best for her and help us make a decision.
I just want you to know, going into this consultation, I really want it to be the last consultation, so we need to come to some kind of decision, after we meet with her.
Do you feel like you have all the pieces to the puzzle, yet, or you feel like you're still lacking some? No.
I still feel like I'm not sure what would be the most viable option.
We want the best for her, but I also think it's time to try to wrap this up.
Dr.
Bowers has a great reputation, and we've had three other consultations.
It's going to be difficult to do the type of vaginoplasty that you want.
I prefer standard vaginoplasty, but I would like to do the surgery in two parts.
I think, if you're going to surgeons that only do penile-skin inversion, I think they're going to have a significant challenge with creating your vaginal canal.
Just, it doesn't feel perfect yet.
You know what I mean? Like, I feel like there's always The quest for the perfect vagina.
I want a standard vaginoplasty done because it's what I've always dreamt about, so I'm hoping that Dr.
Marci Bowers provides this miracle option and operation, and then everything will be perfect, but I don't know if that's going to happen.
But what if Dr.
Bowers doesn't really give us any clarity, and we're kind of even more confused? I think we should go into this with an open mind.
I don't want to say that we're not going to have another consult, but I'm hopeful that we'll be able to draw a conclusion after we meet with Dr.
Bowers.
Jazz is the most important decision-maker in this process because it's Jazz's body.
We're here to support her, but let's face it.
There's only so many ways to do this procedure.
The blockers had their effect, so you've already got a baby clitoris, but to create an adequate vagina, in terms of depth and diameter, my suggestion would probably be We're at the airport, getting ready for our flight, heading to Dr.
Marci Bowers.
San Francisco! I'm super nervous and anxious.
I've gone through so many different consultations regarding the bottom surgery, so I'm hoping that this will be the last one.
What's this? Ooh.
Do not touch that 'cause I'm sure it goes a little bit like this.
Is that a vagina light? Yes, it's a vagina light.
- Knock, knock.
-Hi.
- Hey.
How are you? I'm Marci Bowers, and I'm an ob/gyn whose specialty is treatment of gender dysphoria and gender-confirmation surgery, and in 2003, I became the first woman with a transgender history to perform the surgery itself.
Okay.
Well, we're here to talk about My vagina, my future vagina.
All right.
You know, she has gone closer, where we live, for some consults, but, you know, it's almost confused us 'cause everybody sort of has a different opinion as the way to go with Jazz.
Okay.
You know, there's a little bit of marketing, a little bit of self-promotion.
There's a little bit of procedural bias.
There's a little bit of experiential bias, you know, and all that makes it very confusing for patients.
Well, let me step out and have you undress.
Okay.
I already had three consultations, and the doctors that I went to said that getting a standard vaginoplasty in one step is not even an option.
- You ready? - Yep.
I'm really worried that we traveled all this way to hear the same thing.
Okay.
Well, you're going to be a challenge, darling.
Jazz has been puberty-blocked, so the bad news is that the penis is really, really small, and it's really, really narrow, so she doesn't have a lot of tissue to work with.
- Come in.
- You're decent? - Yes.
- Okay.
Okay, so the blockers had their effect, so you've already got a baby clitoris, but to create an adequate vagina, in terms of depth and diameter, my suggestion would probably be to use the penile inversion plus a skin graft from the lower abdomen.
How many times have you had to take a graft from the abdomen? It's 0.
5% of the time, but it's still a significant number.
Is it typically one procedure? We've done 1,600 surgeries.
Fewer than 75 times have we ever had to come back for a second surgery.
Yay! I'm super excited because no colons, no intestines, just the standard vaginoplasty, and that's what I've always dreamt about.
So with depth, do you think we could get to, like, the 5, 6-inch range or maybe not.
Yeah, I think so.
You'll get enough that, you know, it'll be reasonable, yeah.
Okay.
And have you figured out who you're attracted to? Kind of.
I don't know.
Well, that's a very vague answer.
I think I'm No, I would say I'm still exploring my sexuality.
Yeah.
If I do pursue a male partner, would it have to be someone with a limited penis size? No.
We don't You know, generally, on first dates, people don't ask.
You know, they don't say, "what's your erect penis size?" You'd tend not to get second dates.
Well, I just don't want my vagina to get damaged.
No, well, you don't We're more into being beautiful.
Well, let's just get really graphic 'cause Well, what if it tears? That's all I see in my head, is, like, a big No, it's not gonna tear.
Obviously, I'm not expecting it to be perfect, but I know No, I expect it to be perfect, though.
Yeah, yeah.
Dr.
Marci is really confident that she can make this a beautiful vagina, and her confidence is making me more comfortable.
So, you're hoping to have surgery by when? This has been a big conversation amongst us.
So our options were either between junior and senior year, and then the other option was doing it between high school and college and just taking, like, a one-year break.
Which one do you think would probably be better? I don't think it's entirely for me to decide.
Yeah.
I would say do the procedure before your senior year because I don't think she's the type of person that should be taking any time off.
She's extremely bright, but she suffers from clinical depression, so I think taking her out of the academic setting could be negative.
You know, healing takes a long time, so once you're post-op, it's going to be challenging.
I feel like the best time is after she's done with high school.
However, I'm not dead set on my conclusion.
If you can do it between junior and senior year, obviously, we're home, we could take care of her, and it will not negatively impact her, so I'm conflicted.
So I was blocked before I could experience, like, - orgasms or ejaculations.
- Mm-hmm.
So afterwards, will I be able to experience that? You have had an orgasm? No, never.
You need to have an orgasm before surgery.
- I don't think I, like - You are required.
I'll write a prescription.
But I don't Can I, or does it Yes.
I've never experienced an orgasm, and to be honest, I didn't know if it was possible.
I'm guessing Jazz chooses not to masturbate or use that part of her body now because she has dysphoria about her genitalia.
I don't think she likes her genitals.
Masturbation is a really important thing for lots of reasons.
One is to teach you the orgasm.
Two is to bring blood flow to the area, but, three, it's also going to stretch that skin out, so you're actually going to have more skin to work with if you use it and have fun with it now.
I'll use it every day.
Just lock the door.
- Nice to meet you.
- Nice to meet you.
Jeanette.
It's nice to meet you.
Tomi.
So nice to meet you guys.
I'm going to slip right behind you.
All right.
Slip on by.
She doesn't want to interact with me at all.
We're off to a bad start.
You're so looking forward to this trip, aren't you? I was just going to say, "I'm so not looking forward to this trip.
" Yeah.
I'm not too excited about this.
We just got home from San Francisco, and now, I am packing to go to Dallas, Texas, to be on the Tomi Lahren show, and it makes me nervous.
I don't like being in confrontational situations.
I don't like putting Jazz in those situations.
And you're not going to be there, which really sucks.
I feel bad that I can't go to do the Tomi Lahren show, and I just hope that the hate or the negatively is kept to a minimum.
You know, I look at Tomi as a mean girl, as the kind of person that does bully people.
I just want to make sure that Jazz is not taken advantage of, that she's not bullied.
I think you guys have to all be careful about taking the low road.
Just because she does it doesn't mean you have to do it, and you also Well, I fall into that trap.
They don't.
She's said some negative things, but if she's having an interview, and she's just having a conversation, and she's being reasonable during that conversation, you know, you might want to just stay within that context.
I think Tomi has ambitions, and she will say a lot of things that she may not necessarily even agree with to accomplish those objectives, but I'm cautiously optimistic, and I don't think she wants to get into a shouting match with a 16-year-old, or, at least, I hope not.
Ducks! Aah.
- Come over here! - Hey, do not, no.
Okay.
Okay.
- They're going to start - Now, they're going crazy.
They're going to start swarming, now.
Now, here they come.
Here, duck, duck.
This one is going crazy.
Ah! It got really close.
So close.
Oh! - Did it hit you? - No, almost did.
There are birds literally everywhere.
It's crazy! Okay, fine, fine, fine, fine! Oh, my god! Oh, my god! I was like, "oh, my god.
" Ducks, we're all out, got to go.
Shoo, shoo.
Here, here they go.
Okay.
I just got assaulted by a bunch of ducks.
Here they go.
Okay, lovely.
So, what's going on in your life? I do have my surgery coming up for my blocker.
Well, how many implants have you had before? This is my second one.
You nervous? Are you excited, or are you just, like, "let's just get it over with.
" I'm excited because, once I do that, I'm getting a boost on my hormones.
Ooh, girl, that's what life is about.
I know there's a long road ahead of me, and I know there's still a lot to be done, but being friends with Jazz has taught me a lot about just transitioning as a whole, and I'm glad that we can depend on each other and care about each other.
There's a whole realness factor where it's like, "this is actually happening.
" - Yeah.
- So I feel the same way about my bottom surgery, you know? What's going on with that? So, I did go to Dr.
Bowers, and she could do the procedure in one step, while other doctors said I would have to do multiple steps.
Now, the other thing I have to decide is when I'm going to get the operation done.
After talking about the surgery so much, it just gives me so much anxiety, so I do feel a sense of urgency for myself because waiting longer only makes it harder.
Anyway, I'm doing that interview with Tomi Lahren tomorrow.
How are you feeling about it? I'm a little anxious because I don't want to provide opposition on the scene because I don't want to create conflict.
I don't think conflict is necessarily a bad thing.
It's something I feel is everyone's responsibility.
If they see something that's bad, they need to speak out against it.
She's preaching bad things, and I feel like it's our duty to disagree with her in the loudest way possible.
I appreciate that Jazz wants to keep it cool, but I do think, when you're facing injustices, you should speak out a little.
Well, if we just start lashing out on her, then that could paint a bad picture for us.
You know what I mean? I really hope that I get to say everything I want to say, but anytime you're gonna talk to someone who disagrees with you, there's the potential for an argument, and I'm a little bit nervous that she's gonna go there.
All right, then.
Let's do this.
We are in Texas to do the Tomi Lahren show.
- Hello.
- Hi.
And given Tomi's statements in the past, I am almost certain that she's going to disagree with everything we have to say.
Hi, you guys.
- Hello.
- I'm Jennifer.
Hi, Jazz.
Nice to meet you.
Nice to meet you.
But it's really important that I get my message across because it's my one and only chance to reach an audience that I usually can't access People who aren't accepting of the transgender community.
Just really quick, I'll take you on a quick little tour Just so you can see the studio and just kind of see what we do here.
- Okay.
- Great.
And then, we'll put you in makeup.
- Okay, perfect.
- Oh, there's Tomi.
- Well, hello.
- Hi.
Nice to meet you.
Nice to meet you.
- Jeanette.
- Tomi.
So nice to meet you guys.
I'm going to slip right behind you.
All right.
Slip on by.
Bumping into Tomi, it's a little bit awkward.
She's kind of like, "ah, I got to go, got to go, dadadadada," and I feel like she's trying to rush by.
She doesn't want to interact with me at all, so we're off to a bad start.
So this used to be the old Texas Walker Ranger studio.
Upstairs is where "the Blaze" is, like, our show.
All of our shows are up there.
We have, I think, a total of 16 shows here.
- Oh, wow.
- Yeah.
And "the Blaze" is all about freedom of thinking, freedom of speech.
Tomi might be conservative, but not all of us in here are.
Okay.
That's good to know.
So, really, you're in friendly fire.
Come on.
Let's check it out.
It was very surreal, based on all the memorabilia and things hanging on the walls.
I was in a place that I didn't belong in.
And I'll have you sit right here for makeup and hair.
- Okay, perfect.
- Go ahead and have a seat.
- Thanks.
- Sure.
Thanks, guys.
Have a good show.
Thank you.
When I walk into the makeup room, I see Tomi, again, and, you know, it's a little bit uncomfortable because I feel like she's a bully.
She's a hater.
She's mean, so I just want her to leave, and then I'll get my makeup done.
- Hey, Tomi, girl.
- What's up? You got a hit time in 3 minutes, babe, with Matt Schlapp.
I'm definitely nervous about not knowing what to expect.
This is new territory for Jazz, but she's prepared.
She's done her homework, and I'm confident that Jazz could hold her own.
Hey, beauty queen.
- Jessica! - Hi.
- Mwah.
- Mwah.
This is a little bit terrifying.
We know that Tomi is capable of saying some pretty hateful things, but I don't want Jazz to see that I'm nervous.
I want her to think that Jeanette and I are totally cool and calm Jazz, you ready? so we're going to continue to portray that and hope that it's contagious.
Just to clarify, if I want to restate something that I said, I could do that, right? - Of course.
- Okay.
Walking onto set, I am a little bit nervous because I'm not sure what to expect today.
I've never done something like this before where it's kind of a debate.
I've seen her videos, and she's a little bit of a bulldog.
It's not really the drag queens they're worried about in North Carolina.
It's the creeps that will use it to self-identify as whatever gender will get them closer to their victims.
Those who are left are all about feelings, while the rest of us just don't want to get raped in the bathroom.
You guys are going to be friends by the end of this.
Trust me.
- Hmm.
- Go ahead.
- That would be amazing.
- Thank you.
That's kind of a stretch.
Tomi makes fun of transgender people, and it's insulting and hurtful.
I think Jennifer is just trying to make it all rainbows and unicorns and butterflies and, "Everything is going to be great.
Don't worry.
You guys will be friends for life.
" Not going to happen.
- Is Mom joining us all, too? - Mom is not joining.
Mom is just going to be off camera.
Do you want to sit with me on the stairs? That's kind of where I sit.
It's the best view.
Just somewhere where Jazz can see me.
Hey, Tomi.
Hey, Jazz.
This is Tomi.
- Tomi, this is Jazz.
- Hello.
- So nice to meet you.
- Nice to formally meet you.
- Exactly.
- And this is Jessica.
- Hi, Jessica.
- Jessica, this is Tomi.
- Nice to meet you.
- Oh, my goodness.
I was envying your outfit from afar.
I think we're going to learn a lot about each other through this.
I don't know if you've seen my stuff online, but folks tend to think that I'm very aggressive.
I'm the least aggressive person you'll meet.
Maybe, her definition of aggressive is different than the rest of the world's.
- Good to go? - Yep.
Stand by.
Here we go in five, four, three, two, one.
Cast two.
Stand by.
Here we go in five, four, three, two, one.
Cast two.
I'm excited to have you here.
I'm excited to have both of you ladies here.
I think that we have misconceptions about each other.
I think we don't have conversations with each other, if we perceive we're so different, but at the end of the day, we're human beings, and we all want to be loved, and we all want to belong.
But for me, my biggest question for you is, what does people like me, people on the right, what do we get wrong about your lifestyle or your way of life? Okay, well, I think one of the major misconceptions is that a lot of you guys think it's a choice or that one day, I woke up and decided I wanted to be a girl, and that's not true.
I was born this way.
As soon as I had verbal expression, I was stating that I was a girl.
I get it.
If you feel that you're a woman, I get it.
But why do you have to surgically change yourself? So, personally, I just feel uncomfortable in my body, the same way you would feel uncomfortable in your body if you had the wrong genitals, and for me, I completely have a girl mind and brain and express myself as a woman, and when my body doesn't match that, I feel like I'm trapped.
I'm trapped in the wrong skin.
You know, if the surgery, operation is going to make me happy, then that's all that matters.
Well, now, I will say this.
I have to have an honest moment with myself and say, "listen, I sit here as a conservative, as a republican," and I say, "limited government.
" I say, "do as you want.
" I just don't want to pay for it.
I will say that.
That feeds right into how strongly I feel about the Bathroom Bills.
I think we have common ground in the sense that you and I don't want a government overreach.
Government agents standing outside bathrooms, looking at people's birth certificates or asking for a physical inspection feels to me very intrusive and the opposite of what I would assume that conservatives would want.
I really wanted to hold her accountable for some of the language she's used 'cause I'm pretty sure you described transgender people as drag queens or sexual predators trying to get closer to their victims.
You know, and I want to talk about that because I feel as though there are individuals, sick individuals, that are going to take advantage of someone, and then they're going to use the guise as being transgender to do it.
It's just mythology.
The 17 states that have inclusive laws around their bathrooms have zero incidents of any assault, so the fact is there isn't a basis for this fear.
I'm still someone that says, "I think it opens up a can of worms.
" But the reality is Jazz is the most unsafe person in a restroom.
If I had to use the men's restroom, imagine, you know, the harm that does to me.
When I was in my early years at elementary school, I was not allowed to use the girls' bathroom.
I had to use the nurse's bathroom, and even at that young age, I wondered why I was being treated differently, and in second grade, I actually snuck into the girls' bathroom, and I got in trouble.
Were people calling you a pervert? No, not at all.
- I was just doing my - You weren't, but when they saw you going into the women's restroom, is that the feelings that they got? I was a second grader who looked very innocent with pigtails.
I do not think I was a pervert, at all.
But do you think that you got that reaction? Do you think that's why they couldn't understand? You think that they felt like it was a safety issue? I'm just trying to understand.
This isn't about sexual predators.
We're discussing equal rights, and there is no right and wrong, and I don't know how you could disagree with that.
I know you're not old enough to vote yet.
But how do you feel about the next four years? You know, I don't want to live my life in fear of being judged by someone who doesn't even understand the content of my character, and if I couldn't be my authentic self, like I am today, and, you know, expressing myself as a woman and being proud of who I am, then I probably wouldn't even be here.
Authenticity is something that we have in common.
That's what I like to say.
People say, "speak the truth.
Tell the truth," whatever.
I say, "stand in your truth.
" But, you know, thank you guys for having the conversation.
You know, it's not always an easy one to have.
But, you know, thanks for being here, truly, truly.
Thank you so much for being here.
While I don't know if Tomi came full circle, I know that some of her audience members are going to watch this and be like, "you know what? Transgender people do deserve equal treatment and acceptance in society.
" I feel like I toughened up my skin a little bit and had to muster up a little bit of courage in order to face someone like Tomi who I knew was going to have an opposing opinion.
Okay.
I feel like, off camera, Tomi is probably like, "oh, I'm wrong.
" - But - I mean, she was very different than what we've seen.
It's very hard to be that confrontational when you're face-to-face with a kid.
I did think that Tomi went home and still felt that "traditionally-minded people," as she called them, are entitled to demand restrooms the way they used to be.
I don't think we changed her mind on that issue.
This could have gone a hundred different ways.
Maybe, we could have been a little more confrontational.
There were certain things that we wanted to call her out for saying, but in the moment, it felt that here was Tomi, extending an olive branch to us, and why kick the bear? But you know what? Her viewers are watching this and they're listening and they're hearing from Jazz, who they would never have heard from, and right there is a win.
Even if it was, like, one person out there that's like, "you know what? I get it, and I accept trans people now.
I wouldn't have in the past," that's a win.
I kept swimming, swimming, swimming.
I see that my mom is missing.
I'm like, "oh, boy.
" My mom is nowhere to be found.
- Nice cup.
- That's my Daddy Cup.
Oh, my goodness.
Here's to you guys.
Thanks for coming home.
What are you drinking? Bubbly seltzer water.
All the kids are down from college because we're going on our scuba-diving trip.
I think it's going to be a fun family adventure, and I think we're going to have a lot of great stories when we're done.
You guys looking forward to scuba diving? I'm actually quite scared.
Don't you just float up if something goes wrong? Yeah? I guess you missed that lesson.
- Is that Mom and Jazz? - It is them.
Hello, hello.
Hey.
Hi, fam.
Hi.
I am so relieved when we get home from Texas.
That was a very stressful trip 'cause I think that either side could have taken it to another level, but nobody wanted to throw the first punch, so kind of just, like, it was like a boxing match where they just kind of do this and this and this, and they never did the thing, which was fine.
So, what happened on the show? Well, we were expecting the worst, considering this woman, like, raises her voice very high and gets very aggressive.
She was respectful, but she still stood ground on the way she believes in things.
And did we show her what's up? So, I mean, we tried to keep it as peaceful as possible.
Do you think that having met you in person is going to change her views at all? I think, deep down inside, she saw me, she heard what we had to say, and I think we could have swayed her.
I'm relieved.
It was even a little stressful for me 'cause we just really were going into a totally different element and environment, but I think it remains to be seen how involved we'll be with adversarial parties in the future.
I think it was nice that you guys put out an olive branch.
I, for one, am proud of you.
I, for two, am proud of you.
- Aw.
- Me three, then.
Y'all are kisser-butters.
All right.
We are on our way to the keys.
We're driving to scuba diving, and I think it's going to be a fun family adventure.
A family trip is a rare thing in our lives now with the kids off to college, and I am so excited to be with my whole family With my four little chickadees and my hubby together.
- Jeanette, you with us? - No.
So, we come home, and you don't even want us to be here? That really hurts, Mom.
I want to be with you guys but in a different setting.
You know that I'm not happy about having to scuba dive.
I took dramamine so I don't hurl all over the boat.
I get seasick very, very easily, and I have this huge fear of vomiting.
Maybe, an overdose of dramamine and scuba diving aren't exactly a good combo.
Let's hope this is a great expedition.
Eh? - Hello.
- Hey, guys.
Hi, we're the Jennings.
We're here to see Kate? Hi, guys.
How are you doing, today? Hey, Kate.
I'm Greg.
Hi.
I'm Kate.
I'm most looking forward to spending some family time in a unique environment.
I have this vision of all of us swimming in the ocean side by side, seeing all these cool fish and the coral and just popping up at the end, going, "that was freaking awesome.
" The most exciting thing about going scuba diving for me is when it'll be over.
So, we do have a little bit of bad news.
So, we do have a kind of wind front coming through in the area, so it's a little bit too dangerous out on the boats, today.
We have about 5-foot seas.
I imagine you're relieved.
Hallelujah! Sorry.
So, we do have an alternate place that we can go, so we're not completely done for the day.
It is pretty close by, and we can still do our dive.
We won't be diving in the open ocean, but I'm still looking forward to seeing all the awesome fish and the beautiful coral, and I feel like this is going to be a lot of fun.
- I'm excited.
- Let's go swimming.
- Let's ride.
- Let's go see the fishies.
We get to the dive location, and I don't even know.
Is it a lake? Is it a lagoon? It looks very, very muddy.
All right, you guys.
We're going to head on over to where the ball that we're going to use to head down, okay? The lagoon looks kind of like a swamp, to me.
It's kind of icky.
It's kind of, like, just all dirty, and it's cold and, like You know, I love mermaids.
I love the sea, but the water is, like, green and brown, and it's a little bit of a letdown.
In the muddy brown water, I kept swimming, swimming, swimming, swimming.
It got murkier and darker and darker, and I realized, "I'm alone.
" I see that my mom is missing.
I'm like, "oh, boy.
" My mom is nowhere to be found.
I'm hoping that she didn't make her way into the actual sea.
- Oh! We lost you.
- There she is! There she is, outside the thing.
Did you really - How'd she get through that? - I don't know! Yeah, Mom, you did it! My worst fear was that I would wander off somewhere and get lost and not know where to go, and that's exactly what happened to me.
I guess we're not going to climb mount Everest together next, huh? Definitely not.
Say "Hey, where is everybody?" The whole thing was a disaster.
I'm glad we're all here and in one piece and that we found Mom.
I'm so glad we did this even though it wasn't ideal, and some of us didn't get the great experience they wanted.
It's sad not having you guys at home.
Like, I really miss you, and, you know, you've had quite a year You guys, starting school.
Ari has become very grown up.
- Adulting.
- No, you have, like Well, what about you, Jazz? We haven't talked about you.
I think you're dealing with more mature issues is really Yeah.
I guess I'm dealing with serious things like the surgery, and it's hard, but, I mean, I've been thinking about stuff a lot, and I feel like I know what I want to do.
I think, for my surgery, I want to go to Dr.
Marci Bowers.
Applause.
I chose Marci Bowers as my surgeon because she just offered everything that I dreamt about.
She said that she would make it as aesthetically pleasing as possible, and that's something very important to me.
I think you came to the right decision.
Yeah.
Remember when I was two years old, and I had that dream? "When is the good fairy going to come and change my penis into a vagina?" - She's your good fairy.
- She's the good fairy.
Oh, my god.
I'm going to cry.
No.
I am so relieved that the long, hard search for the doctor has come to an end.
Yay.
Now let's make steps towards the next chapter, which is getting a date and getting it done.
- Oh, my baby is - This is as real as it gets.
Right? I've been thinking about when I'm going to do it, as well, and I think I'm going to do it between junior and senior year.
I actually feel a lot of relief.
I'm ready to become a complete woman.
This is what I always thought should be the plan, and I never wavered from that, and I'm glad that she concluded that on her own.
At the end of the day, it's the right time for Jazz.
It feels like the end of one journey, but it's really the beginning.
It's been a lot of work to get to this place.
I mean, ever since I was two years old, I've always been declaring that I am a girl, and now, I will have a vagina.
It's so interesting to think that.
Ah! Ooh, I'm excited.
It's been quite a dramatic year.
I'm going to need a whole 'nother year to recoup from this year.
We had the twins go off to college.
We had Ari turn 21, and we had Jazz turn 16.
Happy birthday! And she has really blossomed into such a great person.
I'm proud of you because you had shut yourself down for a while, and you did a lot of things that I'd never thought you would do.
She's evolving.
She's willing to go out of her comfort zone for her own emotional growth.
I don't want to live my life in fear of being judged by someone who doesn't even understand the content of my character.
It's going to be the greatest day ever to see that smile on your face when you wake up from anesthesia and come out of surgery, and you can look down and see what you want to see, and to see you smile is going to put all of us in tears, and I already know it.
It's great that we've gotten over this hurdle, but there's some things that need to be done to prepare for the surgery.
She has to go off the hormones for a while, and then she's going to have to go to two therapists to get her letters to have the surgery, and Jazz hates therapy.
Just because I have finally come to conclusions about this operation doesn't mean that everything is going to be sunshine and rainbows.
Post-op depression is very common.
For me, it was the worst pain I had ever felt in my life.
Really? Everything is going to be supremely difficult.
It's still a very difficult path, but I just know, in my heart, that whatever the risks are, it will be worth it.
So, you guys ready?
With the kids up at college, very rarely do we ever just spend time as a family.
Dad! Sorry.
On a scale of one to 10, with 10 being somebody super coordinated, I'm like a 3.
5.
I'm on the search for America's next top vagina.
I've always dreamed about having this procedure done.
We don't have the raw materials we need.
I think they're going to have a significant challenge with creating your vaginal canal.
Where are we going? How do we make our final decision? We need to have another consultation.
It's not really the drag queens they're worried about in North Carolina.
It's the creeps that will use it to self-identify as whatever gender will get them closer to their victims.
I'm not overly ecstatic about putting Jazz in the firing line of a shock jock.
Hi, I'm Shane.
It's nice to meet you.
Jazz, Shane is here.
In the past, dating has always been a weird, awkward situation.
Where'd she go? With Shane, I feel like I can just have a good time and be myself.
We should do something again, sometime.
Yeah.
16 years ago, I was assigned male at birth, but inside, I always knew I was a girl.
I have a girl brain and a boy body.
Being transgender hasn't been easy This is definitely not, like, a straightforward case.
I don't think you have any option for vaginoplasty.
I had a lot of fun.
Have a great night.
- That sounds like a date.
- It's not a date! but it's made me who I am.
I am Jazz.
Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah.
Who's that coming through the door? Oh! You're my number-one boy.
Does that mean the date didn't go so well? No, no.
So, the jumping thing.
The jumping thing? - Was it fun? - It was fun.
I still got it.
I may be slightly overweight, but I can still do it.
And did you have fun with, like, hanging out with Shane? Yeah.
It was fun.
Would you hang out with Shane again? I don't know.
What? Jazz, I don't understand you.
You go on a double date.
There's a guy that you actually think is cute.
You really liked his personality, and it's all about that.
Why would you say no? I don't know.
I don't know, Mom.
It's so frustrating, for me, because Jazz was really looking forward to this date, and she really liked Shane.
I was like, "what happened?" I just want to know where you're coming from 'cause I'm trying to figure you out 'cause I want to help you in the love department, but I can't if I can't figure you out.
Well, it's just that I'm kind of limited in what I could do, currently.
I could have oral sex with a male or a female, or I could receive, which also does not sound appealing at all.
I don't have the body of a biological female, so I think that hinders me because I feel uncomfortable being in a sexual relationship with someone because I don't feel comfortable with my own body.
Ah.
I definitely am interested in Shane, but if someone that I like is ready to have a relationship with me, then I do feel like it's kind of letting them down that I'm not ready for sex yet.
That makes sense a lot.
That really makes sense.
You don't want to kind of put yourself out there too much.
You don't want to take it past a certain line.
It just limits my sexual options.
But just because you go on a date with somebody doesn't mean that it has to be sexualized.
Jazz is putting the cart before the horse.
She's worrying about the next phase of relationships and intimacy when, right now, she's just on her first date, so I just need her to slow down.
You could just kiss somebody and snuggle.
And it doesn't have to go any further.
There are people that are virgins at 30.
You are ridiculous.
I do want a sexual relationship in the future, and after all of these consultations, I can't imagine myself having sex without having a beautiful vagina.
- Boo! - Oh, hi! - Hello.
- That scared me! - Hi.
- How are you? Jazz and I are meeting with Jessica to go over every possible scenario before our debate or conversation with Tomi Lahren.
We just want to make sure we're prepared for this interview.
How have you been? I haven't seen you in weeks.
Busy.
We're going to San Francisco and then Texas with you, and then we're going to Key Largo, scuba diving.
What's in San Francisco? San Francisco is Dr.
Marci Bowers.
What is that a trip for? Well, that is for a consult for Jazz's bottom surgery.
Wow.
Before we began this whole process, I wasn't sure what we were going to do.
I knew we were going to go on a few consultations.
I wasn't sure how many, but we've had three different consultations, and none of the doctors can give Jazz the surgery she wants, so we need a fourth consultation.
I'm so grateful that you were able to squeeze - in this Dallas trip.
- Right.
I mean, how do you feel about going on the Tomi Lahren show? I feel like it's really important because her audience hasn't been exposed to someone like me who is transgender and our perspective of the argument.
I hope that we can address some of the things that she said 'cause they were very hurtful.
Hell, why don't we all just start self-identifying for perks? Tomorrow, I'll park in a handicapped spot and self-identify as someone with disabilities and the next day, maybe, get a spray tan and self-identify as another race, so I can reap those benefits, too.
I mean, was it a hard sell to get your dad to agree to this? Not too bad.
- Really? - No, no.
Is he softening up over all these years? You know what it is? She's held her own.
She's proven, in the past, that she's got what it takes to go up against somebody who's bigoted, and with you by her side, you know, being that you are Well, we'll both be there, and we'll protect you.
Well I don't think I'm gonna do it.
It's not because I'm afraid of Tomi.
It's because - Wait, did you know this? - Yeah, I knew.
You didn't send me a warning that this is happening? This is her heart.
This is who she is.
She's the transgender person.
I want her to talk about her experiences.
I don't want to be like, "when she was 5 years old" Well, your experience is valuable.
There is a good reason why I don't want to be there.
Jazz is the one who is affected the most.
She's the one that's transgender, and I want people to hear her voice.
As Jazz gets older, people aren't going to be as warm and fuzzy towards her because she won't be a child anymore, so she's gonna have to learn how to put the boxing gloves on and fight for what she believes in.
Let's make sure we're You and I, now that your mom is not going to be there That you and I are on the same page in terms of what we want to call Tomi out on.
Okay.
The disabled reference that she had, that's completely making a joke out of what it means to be transgender.
It's delegitimizing everything that we've fought for, like, our whole lives.
Yeah, or when she says, "anyone can just dress up on any given day and just decide that they're a woman that day.
" We need to address those, for sure.
Basically, this comes down to what her opinion is versus what the facts are.
Yeah.
New reality of just saying something and having someone repeat it, and at that point, it becomes fact needs to be called out.
Right now, there's this culture of no one really knowing what the facts are or knowing whom to believe.
There are so many different news sources and so many different voices speaking out on these topics that, if we allow the misinformation to spread, then it becomes harder to debunk these myths that spring up around kids like Jazz.
I hope that she listens to what we say, though.
But even if Tomi doesn't listen, her audience might.
Yeah.
That's true.
You know, she can say, "I think other people's rights are more valuable," and then we would say, "we're not asking for special rights or extra rights.
We're asking for equal rights.
" Just equal, equal.
What are you going to do if Tomi becomes a little aggressive? We could just stop, you know? We could end it right then and there.
We could just take off our mics, get up and be like, "you know what? This is We're not going to dispute with you.
" I have never really been on a show where someone has completely opposing opinions from myself, but I think that a lot of people don't really understand us, and we're not gonna create change in this world unless we have direct conversations with one another.
I mean, let's go into it assuming the be We'll give her the benefit of the doubt.
I mean, why would she invite us onto her show if she wasn't willing to let us speak? Knock, knock.
Hey, what are you doing? You're supposed to be packing.
Jazz.
He's not coming to San Francisco.
I don't even have a suitcase, though.
Ask Daddy to bring one in.
Dad, do you have my suitcase? Which one is it? The, like, hot-pink one.
I hope Dr.
Marci Bowers will look at Jazz and know exactly what's best for her and help us make a decision.
I just want you to know, going into this consultation, I really want it to be the last consultation, so we need to come to some kind of decision, after we meet with her.
Do you feel like you have all the pieces to the puzzle, yet, or you feel like you're still lacking some? No.
I still feel like I'm not sure what would be the most viable option.
We want the best for her, but I also think it's time to try to wrap this up.
Dr.
Bowers has a great reputation, and we've had three other consultations.
It's going to be difficult to do the type of vaginoplasty that you want.
I prefer standard vaginoplasty, but I would like to do the surgery in two parts.
I think, if you're going to surgeons that only do penile-skin inversion, I think they're going to have a significant challenge with creating your vaginal canal.
Just, it doesn't feel perfect yet.
You know what I mean? Like, I feel like there's always The quest for the perfect vagina.
I want a standard vaginoplasty done because it's what I've always dreamt about, so I'm hoping that Dr.
Marci Bowers provides this miracle option and operation, and then everything will be perfect, but I don't know if that's going to happen.
But what if Dr.
Bowers doesn't really give us any clarity, and we're kind of even more confused? I think we should go into this with an open mind.
I don't want to say that we're not going to have another consult, but I'm hopeful that we'll be able to draw a conclusion after we meet with Dr.
Bowers.
Jazz is the most important decision-maker in this process because it's Jazz's body.
We're here to support her, but let's face it.
There's only so many ways to do this procedure.
The blockers had their effect, so you've already got a baby clitoris, but to create an adequate vagina, in terms of depth and diameter, my suggestion would probably be We're at the airport, getting ready for our flight, heading to Dr.
Marci Bowers.
San Francisco! I'm super nervous and anxious.
I've gone through so many different consultations regarding the bottom surgery, so I'm hoping that this will be the last one.
What's this? Ooh.
Do not touch that 'cause I'm sure it goes a little bit like this.
Is that a vagina light? Yes, it's a vagina light.
- Knock, knock.
-Hi.
- Hey.
How are you? I'm Marci Bowers, and I'm an ob/gyn whose specialty is treatment of gender dysphoria and gender-confirmation surgery, and in 2003, I became the first woman with a transgender history to perform the surgery itself.
Okay.
Well, we're here to talk about My vagina, my future vagina.
All right.
You know, she has gone closer, where we live, for some consults, but, you know, it's almost confused us 'cause everybody sort of has a different opinion as the way to go with Jazz.
Okay.
You know, there's a little bit of marketing, a little bit of self-promotion.
There's a little bit of procedural bias.
There's a little bit of experiential bias, you know, and all that makes it very confusing for patients.
Well, let me step out and have you undress.
Okay.
I already had three consultations, and the doctors that I went to said that getting a standard vaginoplasty in one step is not even an option.
- You ready? - Yep.
I'm really worried that we traveled all this way to hear the same thing.
Okay.
Well, you're going to be a challenge, darling.
Jazz has been puberty-blocked, so the bad news is that the penis is really, really small, and it's really, really narrow, so she doesn't have a lot of tissue to work with.
- Come in.
- You're decent? - Yes.
- Okay.
Okay, so the blockers had their effect, so you've already got a baby clitoris, but to create an adequate vagina, in terms of depth and diameter, my suggestion would probably be to use the penile inversion plus a skin graft from the lower abdomen.
How many times have you had to take a graft from the abdomen? It's 0.
5% of the time, but it's still a significant number.
Is it typically one procedure? We've done 1,600 surgeries.
Fewer than 75 times have we ever had to come back for a second surgery.
Yay! I'm super excited because no colons, no intestines, just the standard vaginoplasty, and that's what I've always dreamt about.
So with depth, do you think we could get to, like, the 5, 6-inch range or maybe not.
Yeah, I think so.
You'll get enough that, you know, it'll be reasonable, yeah.
Okay.
And have you figured out who you're attracted to? Kind of.
I don't know.
Well, that's a very vague answer.
I think I'm No, I would say I'm still exploring my sexuality.
Yeah.
If I do pursue a male partner, would it have to be someone with a limited penis size? No.
We don't You know, generally, on first dates, people don't ask.
You know, they don't say, "what's your erect penis size?" You'd tend not to get second dates.
Well, I just don't want my vagina to get damaged.
No, well, you don't We're more into being beautiful.
Well, let's just get really graphic 'cause Well, what if it tears? That's all I see in my head, is, like, a big No, it's not gonna tear.
Obviously, I'm not expecting it to be perfect, but I know No, I expect it to be perfect, though.
Yeah, yeah.
Dr.
Marci is really confident that she can make this a beautiful vagina, and her confidence is making me more comfortable.
So, you're hoping to have surgery by when? This has been a big conversation amongst us.
So our options were either between junior and senior year, and then the other option was doing it between high school and college and just taking, like, a one-year break.
Which one do you think would probably be better? I don't think it's entirely for me to decide.
Yeah.
I would say do the procedure before your senior year because I don't think she's the type of person that should be taking any time off.
She's extremely bright, but she suffers from clinical depression, so I think taking her out of the academic setting could be negative.
You know, healing takes a long time, so once you're post-op, it's going to be challenging.
I feel like the best time is after she's done with high school.
However, I'm not dead set on my conclusion.
If you can do it between junior and senior year, obviously, we're home, we could take care of her, and it will not negatively impact her, so I'm conflicted.
So I was blocked before I could experience, like, - orgasms or ejaculations.
- Mm-hmm.
So afterwards, will I be able to experience that? You have had an orgasm? No, never.
You need to have an orgasm before surgery.
- I don't think I, like - You are required.
I'll write a prescription.
But I don't Can I, or does it Yes.
I've never experienced an orgasm, and to be honest, I didn't know if it was possible.
I'm guessing Jazz chooses not to masturbate or use that part of her body now because she has dysphoria about her genitalia.
I don't think she likes her genitals.
Masturbation is a really important thing for lots of reasons.
One is to teach you the orgasm.
Two is to bring blood flow to the area, but, three, it's also going to stretch that skin out, so you're actually going to have more skin to work with if you use it and have fun with it now.
I'll use it every day.
Just lock the door.
- Nice to meet you.
- Nice to meet you.
Jeanette.
It's nice to meet you.
Tomi.
So nice to meet you guys.
I'm going to slip right behind you.
All right.
Slip on by.
She doesn't want to interact with me at all.
We're off to a bad start.
You're so looking forward to this trip, aren't you? I was just going to say, "I'm so not looking forward to this trip.
" Yeah.
I'm not too excited about this.
We just got home from San Francisco, and now, I am packing to go to Dallas, Texas, to be on the Tomi Lahren show, and it makes me nervous.
I don't like being in confrontational situations.
I don't like putting Jazz in those situations.
And you're not going to be there, which really sucks.
I feel bad that I can't go to do the Tomi Lahren show, and I just hope that the hate or the negatively is kept to a minimum.
You know, I look at Tomi as a mean girl, as the kind of person that does bully people.
I just want to make sure that Jazz is not taken advantage of, that she's not bullied.
I think you guys have to all be careful about taking the low road.
Just because she does it doesn't mean you have to do it, and you also Well, I fall into that trap.
They don't.
She's said some negative things, but if she's having an interview, and she's just having a conversation, and she's being reasonable during that conversation, you know, you might want to just stay within that context.
I think Tomi has ambitions, and she will say a lot of things that she may not necessarily even agree with to accomplish those objectives, but I'm cautiously optimistic, and I don't think she wants to get into a shouting match with a 16-year-old, or, at least, I hope not.
Ducks! Aah.
- Come over here! - Hey, do not, no.
Okay.
Okay.
- They're going to start - Now, they're going crazy.
They're going to start swarming, now.
Now, here they come.
Here, duck, duck.
This one is going crazy.
Ah! It got really close.
So close.
Oh! - Did it hit you? - No, almost did.
There are birds literally everywhere.
It's crazy! Okay, fine, fine, fine, fine! Oh, my god! Oh, my god! I was like, "oh, my god.
" Ducks, we're all out, got to go.
Shoo, shoo.
Here, here they go.
Okay.
I just got assaulted by a bunch of ducks.
Here they go.
Okay, lovely.
So, what's going on in your life? I do have my surgery coming up for my blocker.
Well, how many implants have you had before? This is my second one.
You nervous? Are you excited, or are you just, like, "let's just get it over with.
" I'm excited because, once I do that, I'm getting a boost on my hormones.
Ooh, girl, that's what life is about.
I know there's a long road ahead of me, and I know there's still a lot to be done, but being friends with Jazz has taught me a lot about just transitioning as a whole, and I'm glad that we can depend on each other and care about each other.
There's a whole realness factor where it's like, "this is actually happening.
" - Yeah.
- So I feel the same way about my bottom surgery, you know? What's going on with that? So, I did go to Dr.
Bowers, and she could do the procedure in one step, while other doctors said I would have to do multiple steps.
Now, the other thing I have to decide is when I'm going to get the operation done.
After talking about the surgery so much, it just gives me so much anxiety, so I do feel a sense of urgency for myself because waiting longer only makes it harder.
Anyway, I'm doing that interview with Tomi Lahren tomorrow.
How are you feeling about it? I'm a little anxious because I don't want to provide opposition on the scene because I don't want to create conflict.
I don't think conflict is necessarily a bad thing.
It's something I feel is everyone's responsibility.
If they see something that's bad, they need to speak out against it.
She's preaching bad things, and I feel like it's our duty to disagree with her in the loudest way possible.
I appreciate that Jazz wants to keep it cool, but I do think, when you're facing injustices, you should speak out a little.
Well, if we just start lashing out on her, then that could paint a bad picture for us.
You know what I mean? I really hope that I get to say everything I want to say, but anytime you're gonna talk to someone who disagrees with you, there's the potential for an argument, and I'm a little bit nervous that she's gonna go there.
All right, then.
Let's do this.
We are in Texas to do the Tomi Lahren show.
- Hello.
- Hi.
And given Tomi's statements in the past, I am almost certain that she's going to disagree with everything we have to say.
Hi, you guys.
- Hello.
- I'm Jennifer.
Hi, Jazz.
Nice to meet you.
Nice to meet you.
But it's really important that I get my message across because it's my one and only chance to reach an audience that I usually can't access People who aren't accepting of the transgender community.
Just really quick, I'll take you on a quick little tour Just so you can see the studio and just kind of see what we do here.
- Okay.
- Great.
And then, we'll put you in makeup.
- Okay, perfect.
- Oh, there's Tomi.
- Well, hello.
- Hi.
Nice to meet you.
Nice to meet you.
- Jeanette.
- Tomi.
So nice to meet you guys.
I'm going to slip right behind you.
All right.
Slip on by.
Bumping into Tomi, it's a little bit awkward.
She's kind of like, "ah, I got to go, got to go, dadadadada," and I feel like she's trying to rush by.
She doesn't want to interact with me at all, so we're off to a bad start.
So this used to be the old Texas Walker Ranger studio.
Upstairs is where "the Blaze" is, like, our show.
All of our shows are up there.
We have, I think, a total of 16 shows here.
- Oh, wow.
- Yeah.
And "the Blaze" is all about freedom of thinking, freedom of speech.
Tomi might be conservative, but not all of us in here are.
Okay.
That's good to know.
So, really, you're in friendly fire.
Come on.
Let's check it out.
It was very surreal, based on all the memorabilia and things hanging on the walls.
I was in a place that I didn't belong in.
And I'll have you sit right here for makeup and hair.
- Okay, perfect.
- Go ahead and have a seat.
- Thanks.
- Sure.
Thanks, guys.
Have a good show.
Thank you.
When I walk into the makeup room, I see Tomi, again, and, you know, it's a little bit uncomfortable because I feel like she's a bully.
She's a hater.
She's mean, so I just want her to leave, and then I'll get my makeup done.
- Hey, Tomi, girl.
- What's up? You got a hit time in 3 minutes, babe, with Matt Schlapp.
I'm definitely nervous about not knowing what to expect.
This is new territory for Jazz, but she's prepared.
She's done her homework, and I'm confident that Jazz could hold her own.
Hey, beauty queen.
- Jessica! - Hi.
- Mwah.
- Mwah.
This is a little bit terrifying.
We know that Tomi is capable of saying some pretty hateful things, but I don't want Jazz to see that I'm nervous.
I want her to think that Jeanette and I are totally cool and calm Jazz, you ready? so we're going to continue to portray that and hope that it's contagious.
Just to clarify, if I want to restate something that I said, I could do that, right? - Of course.
- Okay.
Walking onto set, I am a little bit nervous because I'm not sure what to expect today.
I've never done something like this before where it's kind of a debate.
I've seen her videos, and she's a little bit of a bulldog.
It's not really the drag queens they're worried about in North Carolina.
It's the creeps that will use it to self-identify as whatever gender will get them closer to their victims.
Those who are left are all about feelings, while the rest of us just don't want to get raped in the bathroom.
You guys are going to be friends by the end of this.
Trust me.
- Hmm.
- Go ahead.
- That would be amazing.
- Thank you.
That's kind of a stretch.
Tomi makes fun of transgender people, and it's insulting and hurtful.
I think Jennifer is just trying to make it all rainbows and unicorns and butterflies and, "Everything is going to be great.
Don't worry.
You guys will be friends for life.
" Not going to happen.
- Is Mom joining us all, too? - Mom is not joining.
Mom is just going to be off camera.
Do you want to sit with me on the stairs? That's kind of where I sit.
It's the best view.
Just somewhere where Jazz can see me.
Hey, Tomi.
Hey, Jazz.
This is Tomi.
- Tomi, this is Jazz.
- Hello.
- So nice to meet you.
- Nice to formally meet you.
- Exactly.
- And this is Jessica.
- Hi, Jessica.
- Jessica, this is Tomi.
- Nice to meet you.
- Oh, my goodness.
I was envying your outfit from afar.
I think we're going to learn a lot about each other through this.
I don't know if you've seen my stuff online, but folks tend to think that I'm very aggressive.
I'm the least aggressive person you'll meet.
Maybe, her definition of aggressive is different than the rest of the world's.
- Good to go? - Yep.
Stand by.
Here we go in five, four, three, two, one.
Cast two.
Stand by.
Here we go in five, four, three, two, one.
Cast two.
I'm excited to have you here.
I'm excited to have both of you ladies here.
I think that we have misconceptions about each other.
I think we don't have conversations with each other, if we perceive we're so different, but at the end of the day, we're human beings, and we all want to be loved, and we all want to belong.
But for me, my biggest question for you is, what does people like me, people on the right, what do we get wrong about your lifestyle or your way of life? Okay, well, I think one of the major misconceptions is that a lot of you guys think it's a choice or that one day, I woke up and decided I wanted to be a girl, and that's not true.
I was born this way.
As soon as I had verbal expression, I was stating that I was a girl.
I get it.
If you feel that you're a woman, I get it.
But why do you have to surgically change yourself? So, personally, I just feel uncomfortable in my body, the same way you would feel uncomfortable in your body if you had the wrong genitals, and for me, I completely have a girl mind and brain and express myself as a woman, and when my body doesn't match that, I feel like I'm trapped.
I'm trapped in the wrong skin.
You know, if the surgery, operation is going to make me happy, then that's all that matters.
Well, now, I will say this.
I have to have an honest moment with myself and say, "listen, I sit here as a conservative, as a republican," and I say, "limited government.
" I say, "do as you want.
" I just don't want to pay for it.
I will say that.
That feeds right into how strongly I feel about the Bathroom Bills.
I think we have common ground in the sense that you and I don't want a government overreach.
Government agents standing outside bathrooms, looking at people's birth certificates or asking for a physical inspection feels to me very intrusive and the opposite of what I would assume that conservatives would want.
I really wanted to hold her accountable for some of the language she's used 'cause I'm pretty sure you described transgender people as drag queens or sexual predators trying to get closer to their victims.
You know, and I want to talk about that because I feel as though there are individuals, sick individuals, that are going to take advantage of someone, and then they're going to use the guise as being transgender to do it.
It's just mythology.
The 17 states that have inclusive laws around their bathrooms have zero incidents of any assault, so the fact is there isn't a basis for this fear.
I'm still someone that says, "I think it opens up a can of worms.
" But the reality is Jazz is the most unsafe person in a restroom.
If I had to use the men's restroom, imagine, you know, the harm that does to me.
When I was in my early years at elementary school, I was not allowed to use the girls' bathroom.
I had to use the nurse's bathroom, and even at that young age, I wondered why I was being treated differently, and in second grade, I actually snuck into the girls' bathroom, and I got in trouble.
Were people calling you a pervert? No, not at all.
- I was just doing my - You weren't, but when they saw you going into the women's restroom, is that the feelings that they got? I was a second grader who looked very innocent with pigtails.
I do not think I was a pervert, at all.
But do you think that you got that reaction? Do you think that's why they couldn't understand? You think that they felt like it was a safety issue? I'm just trying to understand.
This isn't about sexual predators.
We're discussing equal rights, and there is no right and wrong, and I don't know how you could disagree with that.
I know you're not old enough to vote yet.
But how do you feel about the next four years? You know, I don't want to live my life in fear of being judged by someone who doesn't even understand the content of my character, and if I couldn't be my authentic self, like I am today, and, you know, expressing myself as a woman and being proud of who I am, then I probably wouldn't even be here.
Authenticity is something that we have in common.
That's what I like to say.
People say, "speak the truth.
Tell the truth," whatever.
I say, "stand in your truth.
" But, you know, thank you guys for having the conversation.
You know, it's not always an easy one to have.
But, you know, thanks for being here, truly, truly.
Thank you so much for being here.
While I don't know if Tomi came full circle, I know that some of her audience members are going to watch this and be like, "you know what? Transgender people do deserve equal treatment and acceptance in society.
" I feel like I toughened up my skin a little bit and had to muster up a little bit of courage in order to face someone like Tomi who I knew was going to have an opposing opinion.
Okay.
I feel like, off camera, Tomi is probably like, "oh, I'm wrong.
" - But - I mean, she was very different than what we've seen.
It's very hard to be that confrontational when you're face-to-face with a kid.
I did think that Tomi went home and still felt that "traditionally-minded people," as she called them, are entitled to demand restrooms the way they used to be.
I don't think we changed her mind on that issue.
This could have gone a hundred different ways.
Maybe, we could have been a little more confrontational.
There were certain things that we wanted to call her out for saying, but in the moment, it felt that here was Tomi, extending an olive branch to us, and why kick the bear? But you know what? Her viewers are watching this and they're listening and they're hearing from Jazz, who they would never have heard from, and right there is a win.
Even if it was, like, one person out there that's like, "you know what? I get it, and I accept trans people now.
I wouldn't have in the past," that's a win.
I kept swimming, swimming, swimming.
I see that my mom is missing.
I'm like, "oh, boy.
" My mom is nowhere to be found.
- Nice cup.
- That's my Daddy Cup.
Oh, my goodness.
Here's to you guys.
Thanks for coming home.
What are you drinking? Bubbly seltzer water.
All the kids are down from college because we're going on our scuba-diving trip.
I think it's going to be a fun family adventure, and I think we're going to have a lot of great stories when we're done.
You guys looking forward to scuba diving? I'm actually quite scared.
Don't you just float up if something goes wrong? Yeah? I guess you missed that lesson.
- Is that Mom and Jazz? - It is them.
Hello, hello.
Hey.
Hi, fam.
Hi.
I am so relieved when we get home from Texas.
That was a very stressful trip 'cause I think that either side could have taken it to another level, but nobody wanted to throw the first punch, so kind of just, like, it was like a boxing match where they just kind of do this and this and this, and they never did the thing, which was fine.
So, what happened on the show? Well, we were expecting the worst, considering this woman, like, raises her voice very high and gets very aggressive.
She was respectful, but she still stood ground on the way she believes in things.
And did we show her what's up? So, I mean, we tried to keep it as peaceful as possible.
Do you think that having met you in person is going to change her views at all? I think, deep down inside, she saw me, she heard what we had to say, and I think we could have swayed her.
I'm relieved.
It was even a little stressful for me 'cause we just really were going into a totally different element and environment, but I think it remains to be seen how involved we'll be with adversarial parties in the future.
I think it was nice that you guys put out an olive branch.
I, for one, am proud of you.
I, for two, am proud of you.
- Aw.
- Me three, then.
Y'all are kisser-butters.
All right.
We are on our way to the keys.
We're driving to scuba diving, and I think it's going to be a fun family adventure.
A family trip is a rare thing in our lives now with the kids off to college, and I am so excited to be with my whole family With my four little chickadees and my hubby together.
- Jeanette, you with us? - No.
So, we come home, and you don't even want us to be here? That really hurts, Mom.
I want to be with you guys but in a different setting.
You know that I'm not happy about having to scuba dive.
I took dramamine so I don't hurl all over the boat.
I get seasick very, very easily, and I have this huge fear of vomiting.
Maybe, an overdose of dramamine and scuba diving aren't exactly a good combo.
Let's hope this is a great expedition.
Eh? - Hello.
- Hey, guys.
Hi, we're the Jennings.
We're here to see Kate? Hi, guys.
How are you doing, today? Hey, Kate.
I'm Greg.
Hi.
I'm Kate.
I'm most looking forward to spending some family time in a unique environment.
I have this vision of all of us swimming in the ocean side by side, seeing all these cool fish and the coral and just popping up at the end, going, "that was freaking awesome.
" The most exciting thing about going scuba diving for me is when it'll be over.
So, we do have a little bit of bad news.
So, we do have a kind of wind front coming through in the area, so it's a little bit too dangerous out on the boats, today.
We have about 5-foot seas.
I imagine you're relieved.
Hallelujah! Sorry.
So, we do have an alternate place that we can go, so we're not completely done for the day.
It is pretty close by, and we can still do our dive.
We won't be diving in the open ocean, but I'm still looking forward to seeing all the awesome fish and the beautiful coral, and I feel like this is going to be a lot of fun.
- I'm excited.
- Let's go swimming.
- Let's ride.
- Let's go see the fishies.
We get to the dive location, and I don't even know.
Is it a lake? Is it a lagoon? It looks very, very muddy.
All right, you guys.
We're going to head on over to where the ball that we're going to use to head down, okay? The lagoon looks kind of like a swamp, to me.
It's kind of icky.
It's kind of, like, just all dirty, and it's cold and, like You know, I love mermaids.
I love the sea, but the water is, like, green and brown, and it's a little bit of a letdown.
In the muddy brown water, I kept swimming, swimming, swimming, swimming.
It got murkier and darker and darker, and I realized, "I'm alone.
" I see that my mom is missing.
I'm like, "oh, boy.
" My mom is nowhere to be found.
I'm hoping that she didn't make her way into the actual sea.
- Oh! We lost you.
- There she is! There she is, outside the thing.
Did you really - How'd she get through that? - I don't know! Yeah, Mom, you did it! My worst fear was that I would wander off somewhere and get lost and not know where to go, and that's exactly what happened to me.
I guess we're not going to climb mount Everest together next, huh? Definitely not.
Say "Hey, where is everybody?" The whole thing was a disaster.
I'm glad we're all here and in one piece and that we found Mom.
I'm so glad we did this even though it wasn't ideal, and some of us didn't get the great experience they wanted.
It's sad not having you guys at home.
Like, I really miss you, and, you know, you've had quite a year You guys, starting school.
Ari has become very grown up.
- Adulting.
- No, you have, like Well, what about you, Jazz? We haven't talked about you.
I think you're dealing with more mature issues is really Yeah.
I guess I'm dealing with serious things like the surgery, and it's hard, but, I mean, I've been thinking about stuff a lot, and I feel like I know what I want to do.
I think, for my surgery, I want to go to Dr.
Marci Bowers.
Applause.
I chose Marci Bowers as my surgeon because she just offered everything that I dreamt about.
She said that she would make it as aesthetically pleasing as possible, and that's something very important to me.
I think you came to the right decision.
Yeah.
Remember when I was two years old, and I had that dream? "When is the good fairy going to come and change my penis into a vagina?" - She's your good fairy.
- She's the good fairy.
Oh, my god.
I'm going to cry.
No.
I am so relieved that the long, hard search for the doctor has come to an end.
Yay.
Now let's make steps towards the next chapter, which is getting a date and getting it done.
- Oh, my baby is - This is as real as it gets.
Right? I've been thinking about when I'm going to do it, as well, and I think I'm going to do it between junior and senior year.
I actually feel a lot of relief.
I'm ready to become a complete woman.
This is what I always thought should be the plan, and I never wavered from that, and I'm glad that she concluded that on her own.
At the end of the day, it's the right time for Jazz.
It feels like the end of one journey, but it's really the beginning.
It's been a lot of work to get to this place.
I mean, ever since I was two years old, I've always been declaring that I am a girl, and now, I will have a vagina.
It's so interesting to think that.
Ah! Ooh, I'm excited.
It's been quite a dramatic year.
I'm going to need a whole 'nother year to recoup from this year.
We had the twins go off to college.
We had Ari turn 21, and we had Jazz turn 16.
Happy birthday! And she has really blossomed into such a great person.
I'm proud of you because you had shut yourself down for a while, and you did a lot of things that I'd never thought you would do.
She's evolving.
She's willing to go out of her comfort zone for her own emotional growth.
I don't want to live my life in fear of being judged by someone who doesn't even understand the content of my character.
It's going to be the greatest day ever to see that smile on your face when you wake up from anesthesia and come out of surgery, and you can look down and see what you want to see, and to see you smile is going to put all of us in tears, and I already know it.
It's great that we've gotten over this hurdle, but there's some things that need to be done to prepare for the surgery.
She has to go off the hormones for a while, and then she's going to have to go to two therapists to get her letters to have the surgery, and Jazz hates therapy.
Just because I have finally come to conclusions about this operation doesn't mean that everything is going to be sunshine and rainbows.
Post-op depression is very common.
For me, it was the worst pain I had ever felt in my life.
Really? Everything is going to be supremely difficult.
It's still a very difficult path, but I just know, in my heart, that whatever the risks are, it will be worth it.
So, you guys ready?