Which bathroom should transgender students use?
Currently there are an estimated 700,000 transgender individuals in the U.S., according to a 2011 report by the Williams Institute School of Law at UCLA, and there are likely to be many more who go unreported. California, Colorado, Hawaii, Illinois, Iowa, Maine, Maryland, Minnesota, New Jersey, New York, North Carolina, Oregon, Vermont, Washington and the District of Columbia also have laws specifically designed to protect transgender citizens from harassment or discrimination, although these protections vary greatly by state.
That still means that in the majority of states, transgender students and adults have no such protections.
Much of the court battles so far have centered around the issue of public accomodations policy. According to the Transgender Law Center, "any place that provides goods and services to the general public is considered a public accommodation... Transgender and gender nonconforming people often experience discrimination in their communities when accessing public accommodations including being refused service, being treated differently than their non-transgender peers, or being victims to harmful verbal and physical violence when simply trying to carry out their daily activities." In the context of trans youth, this debate often centers around public accomodations such as restroom facilities and locker rooms.
California has been at the forefront of this push for trans equality, successfully passing and then defending legislation that allows transgender students to play on the sports teams and use the bathrooms that correspond with their gender. That bill, passed last year, gives students the right to facilities in line with their gender identity, regardless of how school paperwork may describe them. In Maine, meanwhile, the state Supreme Court ruled ealier this year that transgender students should be similarly allowed to use the bathroom that corresponds with their stated gender identity.
So to answer the question: yes, yes, yes. A transgender person should use the restroom that matches who they are. Having support at school and acknowledging a student's right to use the bathroom consistent with their gender identity is critical. A negative school experience not only hinders a transgender student's academic achievement and growth, but can also interfere with their long- term health and well being.
I feel that no one deserves to be discriminated, and that everyone should be more tolerant and accept that there are many types of people. I used to feel that Japan was such a closed country, but a recent post on SNS made me change my mind a little. It said that there was a customer making a complaint to the store manager that she doesn’t want LGBT people to shop at the same store, but the store manager put up a post saying that he doesn’t want people who discriminate others at his store. It is true that some people still show disrespect, but I hope this accepting mood will spread through more people.
返信削除I think every people has the right to be accepted no matter what your identity is. In Japan, many LGBT people tend to hide their identity due to the lack of support in Japan. I feel we don't get taught about LGBT people until we get older. I didn't know anything about LGBT people until I got into highschool. I think we should show more respect to LGBT people too because theres actually not much a big difference!. More open minded understanding to LGBT people is needed in Japan to make a society where people don't feel they are left out due to the difference from the majority!
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