Transgender teen Jazz Jennings is making history with her very own doll
The first transgender doll is coming to a store near you and it’s about time. Transgender activist Jazz Jennings is now going to be a doll, coming to stores very, very soon. The 18-inch doll made by Tonner Doll Company is modeled after Very Cool Teen Jazz Jennings, who is the subject of the TLC documentary series, I Am Jazz. Like most dolls currently on the market, the plastic doll’s body won’t have gender markings, but what’s cool is how it’s branded after Jennings herself — the doll celebrates Jazz’s life and the lives of trans people everywhere.
Jazz has already posted on Instagram about the doll and is of course ridiculously excited. “This is the first transgender doll on the market, and guess what?! It’s ME!!!?? @tonnerdoll did a great job of creating this beautiful item! It will be available in July, and I hope that it can place transgender people in a positive light by showing that we are just like all other people?”
Jazz, 16 years old, first entered the national conversation in 2007, when she appeared on Barbara Walters 20/20 at age six. She’s been an outspoken advocate for trans people ever since, sharing her story with millions. She co-wrote a children’s book in 2014 and released a memoir titled Being Jazz: My Life as a (Transgender) Teen in 2016. She’s also appeared on Time’s “Most Influential Teens” list.
“Jazz stands for everything I respect from a human nature point of view — she’s incredibly brave, intelligent, warm-hearted and creative,” Robert Tonner, the company’s founder, said to The Seattle Times.
The Seattle Times reports that the doll is currently being tested for kids aged 8 years and older and should retail for $89.99. If it succeeds in the specialty market, Tonner wants to bring it to mass scale. Which would be amazing: the more variety in the dolls our children play with, the better.
