A child is born. It’s a boy! It’s a girl! Not so fast! In this series, you will meet young people who defy our gender assumptions. While society may promote the gender binary, nature is more varied.
Gender identity is not a choice but a natural path based on many factors—genetics, hormones, environment and culture. Intolerance has consequences, including self-harm and suicide attempts (52% higher than among cisgender teens), which can be traced to condemnation, discrimination and bullying in all areas of family and societal life.
This story, which appeared in National Geographic’s “Gender Revolution” issue, was an opportunity to meet people from the United States, Jamaica, the Dominican Republic and Samoa, who had the courage to make themselves visible. Please consider their lives. Perhaps someday, courage will not be necessary to simply be one’s self.
Artist Bios
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Lynn Johnson
Lynn Johnson photographs the human condition. A contributor to National Geographic, Johnson is known for finding beauty and meaning in elusive, difficult subjects—threatened languages, zoonotic disease, rape in the military ranks, the centrality of water in village life. She collaborates with the people she portrays to honor their visions as well as her own. At National Geographic Photo Camps, she helped at-risk youth around the world find their creative voices.
Organizations
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National Geographic
Representing one of the largest brands on social media with over 801 million followers and a billion impressions each month, National Geographic Content’s award-winning and critically acclaimed storytelling inspires fans of all ages to connect with, explore, and care about the world through factual storytelling. National Geographic Content, part of a joint venture between The Walt Disney Company and the National Geographic Society, reaches up to 402 million households in at least 170 countries and 30 languages across the global National Geographic channels (National Geographic Channel, Nat Geo WILD, Nat Geo MUNDO), National Geographic Documentary Films, and streaming services Disney+ and Hulu, in addition to being a global digital, social, and print publisher. Its diverse content includes Oscar- and BAFTA Award-winning film Free Solo; Oscar-nominated films Sugarcane, Fire of Love, Bobi Wine: The People’s President, and The Cave; Emmy Award-winning franchises Race Against Time and Secrets of; Emmy Award-winning series Animals Up Close and Trafficked With Mariana van Zeller; and Emmy-nominated series A Real Bug’s Life and Tucci in Italy, in addition to multiple National Magazine Awards, Pulitzer Prize finalists, and Webby wins. Visit nationalgeographic.com and natgeotv.com or explore Instagram, Threads, Facebook, LinkedIn, YouTube, TikTok, and Reddit.
Redefining Gender
Featuring: Lynn Johnson
Curated by: Todd James
Locations
View Location Details Download a detailed map of this location Brooklyn Bridge Park – Emily Warren Roebling Plaza1 Water St
Brooklyn, NY 11201
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