Trans Voices Rising: Gianna Toboni's "Just Kids"

Gianna Toboni's heart-stirring documentary, "Just Kids", trailblazes through the journey of a group of transgender children and their families amid an America growing more adversarial towards trans rights and gender-affirming care. With its Tribeca premiere, the film has proven to be a potent and enlightening counterpart to the current political conversation on the same topic.

Borrowing her early career experience producing Vice, a documentary series that had a seven-year run ending 2021, Toboni's film echoes certain qualities of the preceding program. The director primarily adopts an observer's perspective while filming these families, giving the documentary an inherent touch of realism and unexpected momentum. This, however, doesn't exploit the lived experiences of the participants but emphasizes the daunting realities they face. "Just Kids" pivots around the indomitable spirit of the trans children in seeking gender-affirming care and the enduring strength of love, despite governmental resistance.

The film begins with Susan Stryker, a historian providing a comprehensive insight into the headwinds trans people confront in America. She enlightens on the trending bans on gender-affirming care and the existing knowledge about trans people. Her discussions, juxtaposed with advocacies of writer Kelli Parker, lay a formidable structure for the consequent film narrative. They delve into the strides gained over the past 20 years, such as Obama's election and the legalization of same-sex marriage, and the ensuing discontent among American conservative factions. Such factions felt marginalized after the so-called cultural clashes, resulting in their large-scale investments to sway public officials towards more conservative stands. The impact, however, strikes at the heart of bodily autonomy, with attempts to restrict abortions and trans rights.

Toboni's essential argument in "Just Kids" is on the prejudiced decision-making determining who deserving of existence, a heartbreaking conclusion underlined by the lives of Rae, Alazaiah and Tristan - three trans teenagers in conservative states. Interviews of their supporting families further establish this narrative.

The interviews highlight the struggle these families and teenagers face in accessing public resources and healthcare in areas harboring bias against their choices. To broaden the narrative, Toboni features Andrea Jenkins of the Minneapolis City Council and Dr. Elizabeth Mack of the American Academy of Pediatrics. A heartbreaking moment in the film shows Tristan and her mother learning of a crucial Texas medical care provider leaving, due to restrictive laws, leaving them in a precarious spot. Their narrative confirms that moving to more accepting states is not a viable option for everyone.

"Just Kids" is one of the recent documentaries, alongside Preconceived and Zurawski v Texas, spotlighting how right-wing aggression has undermined civil rights advancements over the past half-century. Toboni's documentary presents a comprehensive exploration of the nuances that can potentially illuminate many viewers. It's hoped that most of the target audience will receive this crucial message.