An upcoming issue of National Geographic magazine will feature a nine-year-old transgender girl on the cover and tie in to a two-hour documentary on “the shifting landscape of gender.”
The subscriber cover of the issue features nine-year-old Avery Jackson, believed to be the first transgender person on the cover in National Geographic’s nearly 130 year history. It includes her wonderful quote: “The best thing about being a girl is, now I don’t have to pretend to be a boy.” The newsstand cover features a group photo of transgender, cisgender, bi-gender, intersex, and androgynous people. The issue will hit print newsstands December 27 and be online in its entirety January 3.
The associated documentary, Gender Revolution: A Journey with Katie Couric, will premiere on the National Geographic channel Monday, February 6, at 9 p.m. ET/8 p.m. CT., and will also air on National Geographic around the globe in 171 countries and in 45 languages. The show “will explore the complexities of gender in everyday life, from the moment we are born through our twilight years.”
In preparation, Couric spoke with scientists, psychologists, activists, authors, and families about the role of genetics, brain chemistry and modern culture on gender fluidity. She explained in a press release, “I set out on a journey to try to educate myself about a topic that young people are living with so effortlessly — and get to know the real people behind the headlines. Because the first step to inclusiveness and tolerance is understanding.”
Among those featured on the show are:
- Georgiann Davis, an activist who explores how intersex traits are defined, experienced and contested in contemporary U.S. society; intersexuality is a condition doctors estimate affects one in every 1,500 to 2,000 births
- Dr. Joshua Safer, an endocrinologist engaged in clinical research who addresses a lack of knowledge on medical topics regarding transgender-identified individuals
- Kristina Olson, the director of the Transyouth Project, an organization conducting a 20-year study of hundreds of young transgender and gender-nonconforming kids, as she visits a 12-year-old participant in the study who is considering medications intended to delay the betraying signs of puberty
- Transgender individuals of almost every generation — from a 4-year-old in Washington, D.C., to a retiree in California — who with their families face unique challenges as the result of their evolving gender identities
- Michaela Mendelsohn, a trans woman who owns six franchise businesses around Los Angeles and who, in response to tragically high jobless rates among transgender people, has dedicated her efforts to hire and promote trans workers at her restaurants
- Celebrity activists and pioneers such as tennis star Renee Richards and model and actress Hari Nef
- Gavin Grimm, a trans teen whose lawsuit seeking equal bathroom access is headed to the Supreme Court
- Countless other doctors and scientists who are on the frontlines of gender issues helping shape medical, social and psychological well-being
I’ve loved NatGeo for years, for its global view, amazing photography, and fascinating maps and infographics (because I’m just that geeky). I had its maps of the moon and Mars on my ceiling when I was a child. Now, I have even more reason to read it!