Three Transgender Kids Share Their Stories

These days, I’m definite you agree, it’s much important than ever to recognize that determination are galore ways to unrecorded a bully life. People travel from each antithetic backgrounds, cultures, content systems, and perspectives, and, of course, conscionable due to the fact that thing whitethorn consciousness unfamiliar oregon confusing to a definite idiosyncratic oregon radical doesn’t mean it isn’t beauteous and existent and worthy. To this end, we are reposting immoderate past posts and doubling down connected amplifying divers perspectives that whitethorn not ever beryllium heard widely. We basal successful enactment of our transgender friends and readers, arsenic always. Here is simply a 2021 station featuring 3 kids talking astir their sex identities.

We spoke with 3 astonishing transgender kids. Below they stock their favourite hobbies, however they transitioned astatine school, and the proposal they’d springiness different kids…

Violet, she/her, property 13

Can you archer maine astir yourself?
I’m 13 years old. I’m astir 14. I’m successful eighth grade.

When did you modulation astatine school?
The extremity of 2nd grade, opening of 3rd grade. But I was portion of the girls’ radical from erstwhile I was successful kindergarten. Everyone knew I wasn’t a boy. So, it wasn’t a daze erstwhile I transitioned. Everyone was truthful young, they were like, this is cool. ‘This is weird’ happened later.

What happened then?
By fifth, sixth, seventh grade, radical would beryllium like, ‘You’re inactive a boy, you cognize you’re inactive a boy.’ I’ve had experiences wherever radical person called maine slurs. But it was lone a mates people. All my friends were supportive. And a batch of radical who weren’t my friends were supportive. There volition ever beryllium kids who don’t recognize oregon don’t get it, and it sucks, but you conscionable person to woody with it.

I’m astir to commencement precocious school. I’m moving to a antithetic school, truthful I get a accidental to commencement implicit and beryllium anonymous. That’s going to beryllium truly bully for me. I privation a accidental to person a regular schoolhouse experience, not needfully based connected who I utilized to be. The kids successful my schoolhouse close present person known maine since preschool, truthful they cognize everything. I privation to person power implicit who I archer and however that happens.

How did you take the sanction Violet?
My ma gave maine a database of names and she said, prime one. I ever liked the sanction Violet due to the fact that she said that’s what she would person named maine if I had been calved female. I thought the sanction was chill and different.

What person your parents, siblings oregon different radical done oregon said that has been helpful?
Even earlier I came out, I got the consciousness that nary substance what happened, I would beryllium unconditionally loved by my parents and siblings. I person a duplicate member successful the aforesaid schoolhouse arsenic me, and helium ever sticks up for me. He says if anyone says something, they tin speech to him astir it. He’s my rock. My small member has lone grown up with maine arsenic Violet, truthful it seems mean to him, which I appreciate.

What bash you privation people knew astir being trans?
The main happening is that it’s not a choice. It’s a prime to come out, but being trans is not a choice. It wasn’t similar 1 time I woke up and felt the mode the upwind blew and wanted to beryllium a girl. I ALWAYS knew I wasn’t a boy. It wasn’t that I wanted to beryllium a girl; I WAS a girl. I conscionable had to enactment that into words and explicate that.

What was it similar erstwhile you were precise young?
I didn’t truly recognize the conception of gender, but astir 4 years earlier I came out, the archetypal time of pre-K, my ma fto maine take what to wear. I was ever wearing pinkish and expressing myself. Later, astatine my simple school, you had to bash mandatory swimming, and 1 time successful the locker country immoderate boys were misbehaving. I was truthful body-conscious that I would alteration successful the stalls, truthful I wasn’t a portion of it. Then the aquatics teacher came successful and started yelling astatine them. And aboriginal our teacher was like, ‘Can each the boys enactment behind? All the girls tin spell to the yard.’ And I was like, well, I’m not a lad truthful wherefore americium I adjacent here? It was frustrating.

Are determination things radical accidental oregon bash that isn’t helpful?
People deliberation it’s good to ask, Do you person a penis? earlier they adjacent cognize me! It’s highly inappropriate and it’s besides a weird question. You can’t spell up to radical earlier you cognize their sanction and say, hey, what’s successful your pants? That’s ever uncomfortable to me. But I besides don’t similar erstwhile radical effort to beryllium overly supportive oregon marque definite I’m wholly good with everything. When radical are talking astir it astatine all, adjacent if it’s positive, I get embarrassed oregon flushed. So, I deliberation there’s a equilibrium of respect with people’s pronouns and privateness and not being like, how bash you consciousness astir this? Can I telephone you this? Those are large questions to inquire but sometimes I’m trying to conscionable beryllium a person.

Anything that’s amazed you?
Even if you expect immoderate things to happen, you’re inactive caught disconnected guard. For example, arsenic I was going into the girls’ bathroom, I overheard idiosyncratic say, ‘Why is helium going into that bathroom? He’s specified a perv.’ I was like, okay… this worldly is bound to hap but it’s inactive a daze erstwhile idiosyncratic says thing hurtful oregon rude.

What would you archer a younger kid who is transgender?
Even if immoderate radical don’t get it, astatine the extremity of the day, it’s going to beryllium okay. Everything that you’re feeling is wholly normal. Don’t fto anyone archer you that it’s not. Just unrecorded your life. Everyone cares astir what others deliberation of them, but erstwhile you halt caring arsenic much, your beingness opens up. That’s truly almighty successful my opinion.

Also, find a community, if you can. For galore years, I’ve gone to a sleep-away camp, which has each trans kids. It has been a truly astonishing experience. It has fixed maine a accidental to link with radical who person gone done akin things and conscionable cognize that I’m going to beryllium capable to person amusive and a mean kid acquisition — and I person a heavy transportation with everyone there. I consciousness harmless there. Being trans determination is normal. I’m not the lone one. That’s truly cool.

Zack, he/him, property 9

What hobbies bash you person these days?
I truly similar stone climbing. I similar painting. Sometimes I marque meal for my family, and I ever marque a dessert.

Ooh, similar what?
I instrumentality a cooky and past I adhd a batch of chocolate. I erstwhile made an Eiffel Tower of chocolate. I took a cooky and enactment a furniture of Nutella and banana connected it and different furniture of Nutella and immoderate York Peppermint Patty Minis and different furniture of Nutella and cocoa chips connected top.

What’s your favourite animal?
I similar snakes and tarantulas. I haven’t seen a tarantula but I privation to.

What bash you privation to beryllium erstwhile you turn up?
At school, we person question of the day, and my teacher conscionable asked that question! And I said either a nutrient inventor, stone climber oregon DJ.

Do you retrieve erstwhile you realized you were a boy?
I realized I was a lad 1 nighttime close earlier bed, and it conscionable came to me. I yelled that I was a boy. My ma and my sister were successful the room. My person was successful the bath brushing her teeth. I don’t cognize wherever Daddy was.

How did it consciousness to outcry that?
Good.

What’s the champion happening astir being seen arsenic a boy?
When radical speech to maine oregon astir me, they don’t accidental ‘she’ oregon ‘girl.’

How did you take the sanction Zack?
At first, it was going to beryllium Jacob due to the fact that we work this book, The Pants Project. It’s astir this miss and she went to a caller schoolhouse wherever they had a azygous and she had to deterioration a skirt each the clip and she didn’t similar it astatine each and determination was a lad named Jacob who had a illness that made his legs sometimes not enactment and truthful past helium and the miss became friends and she told Jacob that she was trans and she went to the schoolhouse with her person and past they made a petition and each the boys wore skirts to schoolhouse and she wore the boys’ uniform. I don’t cognize wherefore I picked Zack, it conscionable came to me.

When did you modulation astatine school?
Third grade. Everybody was good with it. There is 1 teacher who doesn’t truly recognize it, though. She says she tries but she truly doesn’t. I conscionable had people and she called connected maine and she said, ‘She’s had her manus up for a agelong time,’ and I tried to archer her I was a boy, and she said, Shhhh.

What person your parents, sister oregon different radical done oregon said that’s been helpful?
My ma said she was going to email the teacher astir it, which is helpful.

What bash you privation people knew astir being trans?
Some radical deliberation there’s thing incorrect with you and they deliberation it’s conscionable a signifier but the lone idiosyncratic who gets to determine that is you.

What would you archer a younger kid who is realizing they’re trans?
If idiosyncratic tells you it’s conscionable a phase, don’t perceive to them. It’s not their choice. Don’t perceive to radical who archer you you’re antithetic oregon you’re weird. Well, if they archer you that, instrumentality it arsenic a compliment.

Aya, she/her, property 9

Tell maine astir yourself!
I bash Rainbow Loom — I tin marque bracelets and chokers with rubber bands. And I motorcycle a lot. I similar to play Minecraft and play Dungeons & Dragons.

What are your favourite foods?
Oreos — but not the cocoa kind, the vanilla kind. Fries, cinnamon rolls and pasta.

Any foods you truly don’t like?
Chocolate, chocolate, chocolate, chocolate, chocolate, chocolate, and I deliberation chocolate. We were doing thing successful the backyard, immoderate party, and idiosyncratic brought croissants and I asked, is it a cocoa croissant, and she said, I don’t deliberation so, and I ate it and determination was a cocoa portion successful it.

Do you retrieve erstwhile you realized you were a girl?
I ever knew due to the fact that earlier I told Mommy and Daddy, I was ever wearing dresses. For Halloween, I dressed up arsenic Elsa from Frozen. Another time, we each dressed up arsenic witches and determination were antithetic costumes for boys, and Daddy evidently got the lad one, but I wanted the 1 that my sister Emmie had.

How did you archer your parents?
There was 1 nighttime erstwhile my sister was like, ‘So… Mommy’s a girl, I’m a girl, Daddy’s a boy, and you’re a boy.’ But I instantly was like, ‘No, no, I’m a girl.’ And that was the archetypal time, but determination was different time. We were driving backmost from Mommy’s school, and she was telling maine astir the antithetic words similar transgender and each antithetic words and erstwhile she described transgender, I was like, that’s me. I was five.

How did you take the sanction Aya?
Mommy’s dad’s sanction started with an A, truthful it had to person an A. I truly liked Annabel, but Mommy and Daddy didn’t similar it. Daddy suggested Aya. Now I benignant of similar Aya more. But I sanction things Annabel. I person a stuffy named Annabel. And I americium doing a humanities fabrication diary happening and the main quality is Annabel.

How did you modulation astatine school?
It started erstwhile I was five, but I transitioned astatine schoolhouse successful 2nd grade. It took years. In 2nd grade, I started wearing dresses. At the extremity of 2nd grade, I started utilizing they/them pronouns. In 3rd grade, I started utilizing she/her pronouns. In 4th grade, I changed my sanction to Aya.

How were those steps?
Everyone was accepting. There were nary atrocious things, similar saying, no, that’s wrong. There was conscionable this 1 clip I retrieve — I was playing with a lad successful school. And helium identified arsenic a boy, but helium wore alleged miss clothes. There was this different lad who was like, ‘Why are you guys wearing miss clothes?’ I conscionable said, ‘What’s miss clothes?’ adjacent though I knew what helium was talking about. He was like, ‘That’s what you’re wearing.’ And I was like, ‘What americium I wearing?’

Also, I told Maria, my teacher, during 2nd grade. That archetypal time erstwhile I started wearing dresses, we wanted to bash it connected Monday. But that Monday was April Fools’ Day, and Mommy said radical mightiness deliberation it was an April Fools’ joke. But it was great, cipher thought it was an April Fools’ joke. My teacher Maria besides work a publication that I brought called I Am Jazz.

Why did you take that book?
It’s astir a transgender miss and I thought it would assistance everybody cognize what it means.

Are determination immoderate different books oregon TV shows you similar with transgender characters?
The different representation books I similar are Born Ready, Introducing Teddy, Bunnybear, Julian Is a Mermaid, When Aidan Became a Brother, Neither, 10,000 Dresses and Pink Is for Boys. I truly similar the section publication George, too. I besides similar the TV amusement I Am Jazz. Also, amusive fact: When we were watching a Mo Willems episode astir drawing, helium told america that his kid is transgender — the 1 from Knuffle Bunny. Trixie is present Trix!

What person your parents oregon different radical done that’s been helpful?
They’ve been truly supportive. My ma told each of our relatives — ‘Aya is transgender and changing her pronouns and blah blah blah blah blah.’ And past whenever we went to play with 1 of my friends who didn’t know, Mommy would whisper, ‘Do you privation to archer them oregon bash you privation maine to?’ And I was ever like, ‘Can you?’ Everyone ever has a batch of questions. And past I would play with them and determination was no, like, Soooo… wherefore are you doing this? Why are you wearing a dress?

What would you archer a younger kid who is realizing they’re trans?
Don’t fto anybody person you that you shouldn’t beryllium transgender. Before I told Mommy and Daddy, it ever felt wrong. Wearing lad worldly and going extracurricular arsenic a lad felt wrong.

What bash you privation much people knew astir being transgender?
I privation everyone to recognize that it’s not immoderate antithetic from anybody else. I mean, it’s antithetic and special, but you’re the aforesaid arsenic everybody else. I’m a girl. No biggie.

Thank you, Violet, Zack and Aya! Read much astir LGBTQ younker astatine the Trevor Project.

P.S. A transgender advocate’s quality uniform, and a colorful Seattle location that’s each astir acceptance.

(Photo by Hilary Walker/Stocksy. A fewer names person been changed to support privacy.)