Bell 1

Amelia Bell

Mrs. Gardner

Honors English 10

8 May 2017

A Transitioning World

Have you or anyone youve known ever been persecuted for something that you cant help? Most

transgenders, people who feel that their birth sex does not correspond with their gender identity, feel this

on a daily basis. They are restricted from using certain bathrooms and being in certain areas where they

would feel more comfortable. We are living in a world where diversity and being proud of who you are is

becoming more supported. The transgender community is growing and finally coming out of their shells,

and I feel it is only humane to be welcoming to everyone, no matter their race, gender, or religion. Title

IX is a federal law stating that discrimination against a certain sex is forbidden for any program receiving

federal financial funding. This law allows for men and women to have the same opportunities in sports,

and allows for separate but equal accommodations such as locker rooms and restrooms. Recently this law

has been rewritten by the Obama administration to reaffirm that ones sex is no longer decided by

biology but by their gender identity (Pruitt). Therefore, isnt denying a transgender girl to use the

womens restroom a form of discrimination on the basis of that law? Although some believe that allowing

transgenders to choose the environment that corresponds with their gender identity may invade the

privacy of others, depriving them of this right demotes their pride and confidence, makes them feel

excluded from a community, and is no different from depriving someone of a certain race or religion their

equal rights.

There have been many arguments made that some non-transgender people may feel

uncomfortable sharing their space with transgender people, or that allowing everyone this right may lead

to people taking advantage of it in a harmful way. Edward Whelan, the president of the Ethics and Public
 Bell 2

Policy Center asserts that, the transgender policy on restrooms and showers makes it much easier for any

man or boy with nefarious or mischievous purposes to gain access to the girls facilities. It is true that

there are dangers and risks that come along with allowing the public to choose the facilities they use.

Allowing people the right to choose their environment based on their gender identity, states Dan Patrick,

the Republican lieutenant governor in Texas, is a public safety issue, not a discrimination issue. He

claims, "It's about common courtesy and privacy, particularly for women" (qtd. in Frosch and Kamp).

Though there are risks in allowing this policy, it is also true that if someone were to have harmful

intentions, a sign on a bathroom door is not whats stopping them anyway; this policy wouldnt be

suddenly legalizing their actions. If people are worried for the safety of women, perhaps it is the men that

are doing the damage that need to change, not the policies that protect the women. Overall, many people

are concerned for the safety of the cisgender community alone. Though people that are not transgender

may not feel entirely comfortable quite yet around those that are, they have no reason not to, for a

transgender man is no different and has no different intentions from a cisgender man, and a transgender

woman is no different from any other woman.

It is known that changing the human mind to accept an idea that was once forbidden is one of the

longest processes that could be undergone. However, if we dont accept these changes and allow

transgenders these rights, we could discourage them from being confident in who they are. Keith

Reynolds, an 18 year old student in Surrey, already feels awkward in his body: I have to wear baggy

clothes to hide my hips, I have to think about how many layers I have to wear to hide my chest (qtd. in

Lyons). People in transition all over the world are suffering from this anxiety about their bodies and

physical image. When directed to change in a dressing room that didnt correspond to her gender, Erica

Lachowitz, a 40 year old trans woman in North Carolina, felt extremely discouraged, especially after

hearing that it was because there were real women in the dressing room (qtd. in Lang). Separating or

differentiating transgender people from those that were born with that gender can destroy their confidence
 Bell 3

and ultimately make them feel as if they are less than normal. Alok Vaid-Menon, a non-binary person in

New York City, recalls how so many of us were too afraid to even use the restroom that we just did not.

Menon now has changed their mindset so that they feel powerful when they use the bathroom of their

choice (qtd. in Lang). Allowing people to use the restroom or be in a place that corresponds to who they

are empowers them and makes them feel proud to be who they are. In the end, why would anyone who is

humane and considerate wish to discourage a community from being themselves and being in a place that

they feel is right?

Segregation and discrimination makes transgenders feel excluded from the community where

they wish to be; it makes innocent people feel that they dont belong. Mary Sanchez from Newport News

writes about a transgender student in Virginia, Gavin Grimm, who was directed to use the bathroom in the

nurses office rather than the mens bathroom that he identified with. She writes that he felt the separate

accommodations were alienating and humiliating (Sanchez). Grimm was simply trying to fit in as a

normal teenage boy, but how can one do that when they cant even enter the boys restroom? Jenny

Anne-Bishop, a 70 year old transgender woman from Wales was told as an adolescent to just get married

and itll all go away. She states, That was the perceived wisdom then they told gay and lesbian people

the same thing (qtd. in Lyons). For thirty years, Bishop was married to a woman in the hopes that they

were right. She continuously lost jobs and had to move homes because of her abnormality. Obviously, it

still didnt silence the voice inside her that told her she was a woman. It is clear that in order to embrace

the minority that is the transgender community, in order to make them feel that they do belong, we must

treat them all the same as everyone else. Allowing and encouraging this diversity and flexibility of gender

is one step towards connecting the people of the world.

Laws that ban discrimination against the transgender community are no different from those that

have been passed to ban discrimination against the African Americans, or anyone of any certain race or

religion. Nico Lang, a journalist from Rolling Stone, reports that, A 2013 survey from UCLA's Williams
 Bell 4

Institute found that nearly 70 percent of trans people had experienced negative interactions in public

facilities from dirty looks to snide comments to physical violence. Does this sound familiar to those

who know of the persecution and violence that tormented the African Americans of the Jim Crow South?

As mentioned before, the fear of rape and fear for the safety of women is one major aspect holding people

back from allowing transgenders to choose their bathrooms. This is extremely similar to the way that

these fears prevented people from allowing African Americans equal rights (Comrade). However, To

date, there's never been a single reported case of a trans person attacking someone else in a public

facility, meanwhile there have certainly been reports of cisgender people abusing transgenders (Lang).

This simply goes to show that history repeats itself and cases like these have been dealt with in the past;

there is no point in once again arguing against the civil rights of the minority. Transgenders, like all other

innocent people in this world, deserve to be in a place where they feel accepted and comfortable in their

own skin.

Overall, it is true that passing laws protecting transgenders may not satisfy everyone, but the

disapproval of some is a small price to pay for these rights that will build transgenders confidence,

include them among the rest of the population, and grant them freedom to be just as we do for everyone

else of specific race, religion, or beliefs. No matter where youre living or when, being free to act how

you wish and to be in places that feel right to you is a civil right that no one deserves to be deprived of.

Next time you feel you are forced to be or act a certain way simply because that is how its always

been, think of the people in this world that feel that every day just trying to be the gender they are. What

would you do?

 Bell 5

Works Cited

Comrade, Doctor. Two Forms of Segregation: How Transgender Discrimination is Similar to and Different

from Racial Segregation. Handsy Comprehensive Exam, Squarespace, 28 Mar. 2016,

www.handsycomprehensiveexam.com/blog/2016/3/26/two-forms-of-segregation-how-transgender-d

iscrimination-is-similar-to-and-different-from-racial-segregation. Accessed 8 May 2017.

Frosch, Dan, and Jon Kamp. "Next Bathroom-Law Battleground could be Texas." Wall Street Journal Online,

23 Dec, 2016, SIRS Issues Researcher, https://sks.sirs.com. Accessed 8 May 2017.

Lang, Nico. What It's Like to Use a Public Bathroom While Trans. Rolling Stone, Rolling Stone, 31 Mar.

2016,

www.rollingstone.com/politics/news/what-its-like-to-use-a-public-bathroom-while-trans-20160331.

Accessed 8 May 2017.

Lyons, Kate. Transgender stories: 'People think we wake up and decide to be trans'. The Guardian,

Guardian News and Media, 10 July 2016,

www.theguardian.com/society/2016/jul/10/transgender-stories-people-think-we-wake-up-and-decide-t

o-be-trans. Accessed 8 May 2017.

Pruitt, Scott. "Why We're Suing Over Obama's Transgender Power Play." Wall Street Journal Online, 31

May, 2016, SIRS Issues Researcher, https://sks.sirs.com. Accessed 8 May 2017.

Sanchez, Mary. "Repugnant Bathroom Reversal." Daily Press (Newport News), 02 Mar, 2017, pp. A.15,

SIRS Issues Researcher, https://sks.sirs.com. Accessed 9 May 2017.

Whelan, Edward. "Title IX in the Restroom." National Review, May, 2016, SIRS Issues Researcher,

https://sks.sirs.com. Accessed 8 May 2017.