School is hard enough as it is. Classes and homework filling up a good portion of your day, the rest is most likely filled with work, sports, or both. If you are one of the lucky few to maintain healthy social lives, not to mention relationships, between all of this, I applaud you. Now, imagine all of this but add in the fact that you are continuously pretending to be someone you are not. This is part of the stress that some transgender students go through on a daily basis. I’d also like to mention the amount of hate, bullying, and discrimination they face is substantial. Transgender students should be treated equal in school systems because more and more people have been coming out as trans in America, it will lessen trans suicide rates, and …show more content…
showing acceptance for all is a good example for children.
Transgender individuals should have the same amount of rights and privilege that we all do.
All-girls schools stand for equality and making your own way through an unforgiving society. In the article “Sisterhood Is Complicated”, Ruth Padawer goes in depth on the controversy of all-girls schools decision on transgendered students to attending. Padawer starts the article by introducing us to Wellesley College, an all-girls college in Boston. At this seemly nice and well-run college, is Timothy, an FtM (Female to Male) transgender student. When Timothy applied, he was well aware that he was not a girl, but his mom did not; therefore, he ended up at Wellesley. In one paragraph, Pawader examines Timothys feelings about his situation, “Though his gender identity differed from that of most of his classmates, he generally
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felt comfortable at his new school” (551). Wellesley has many differently identifying students, and in the case of allowing them to attend, they are accepting. Then bigger issues arose. Timothy ran for Multicultural Affairs Coordinator, and people spoke up very quickly about it. As he was the only one left on the ballot, someone started a Facebook campaign to abstain Timothy from the position. They did not see him as fit because he is a white male. Pawader makes this incredibly strong statement about transgender students, “…they’re doing exactly what these schools encourage: breaking gender barriers, fulfilling their deepest yearnings and forging ahead even when society tries to hold them back” (553). This is a golden point. These schools encourage girls to break out of their shell and be independent and follow all of their dreams. So, there shouldn’t be any less encouragement to a trans student. The transgender population has more weight in our country than I even knew. “Estimate of U.S. Transgender Population Doubles to 1.4 Million Adults” written by Jan Hoffman, of The New York Times, explains some statistics behind the transgender community. When talking about percentages of transgender adults in a single state, Hoffman proclaims, “In some states the results at first glance seemed surprising. In New York, for example, the percentage was 0.51; in Texas it was 0.66” (par. 8). This statistic honestly shocked me. Texas is a politically red state, known for a different set of ideals, yet the number of transgender adults is still so high. This high number was so shocking because of the ‘nature vs nurture’ concept so many people live by. The concept relates to, nurturing, teaching your children to be one way, vs nature, the natural biology of the body. But this concept is not proven one way or the other. No matter, the statistic stands, there are transgender individuals in even the most unforgiving states. In “Addressing Transgender Issues in Schools”, Marian Canvanagh, explains how some all-girls schools have adapted to transgender students. The schools mentioned, seem to be very open and willing to have trans students at their schools. Seattle Girls’ School does not have every policy in place yet, but is a very open-armed, and open-minded, school. Cavanaugh expresses the importance of having an inclusive environment, “Having in place policies, programs, practices, and curricula related to diversity, inclusion, equity, and anti-bias establishes an essential component to educate the entire school community,” (7). Being able to go to a school that has no bias would be a dream. If everyone learned to accept each other, this dream could come true. Kids learning, from an early age, that acceptance is good and normal, could benefit a whole generation, and the ones to come. In primary and elementary is where kids do a lot of developing, and teaching them to accept others and themselves could set them up to be less judgmental and hateful in life. Gay-Straight Alliance groups have been around for a long time.
In communities and in schools, there have always been safe spaces for people who are “different”. Places where you could go to be around people going through the same things as you and ones who are there to support who you really are. Adam McCormick shares his findings in “Gay-Straight Alliances: Understanding Their Impact on the Academic and Social Experiences of Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender, and Questioning High School Students.” This article intrigued me with all of its facts, there have been more studies and research done than I realized. McCormick recounts one of the studies he wrote about, “…findings from this same study suggested that LGBTQ youths who could identify a school staff member they could confide in were significantly less likely to attempt suicide” (72). In the same way that GSAs make people feel safe, having an adult who is personally there for you can make such a huge difference. Having spaces and creating small communities like this can change, and save, people’s lives. Especially when talking about kids and teens going through tricky times, having a safe space can be the matter of life and death. For me, in high school, being able to go to my counsellor to talk during the day is what kept me going. I never had the motivation to go to school until I started talking to someone about what I had been going through. Identity wasn’t a problem I faced but I had major anxiety problems. Going
to school was impossible at times, I would uncontrollably cry before my parents would agree that I could stay home. And it still took years before I started seeing a real therapist about it. It’s not something I would wish upon anybody but, I know we all deal with our own problems All kids will go through rough times, but for some, the rough times never stop. They will get hate for being who they are, for the rest of their lives. That’s why all schools should have these spaces, because somewhere, there’s a kid crying about having to go to school tomorrow. Belief in equality is something that seemed to be all around until recent. It’s difficult to see the positives nowadays, when so many things are changing. The hate in the world right now is all the more reason why we shouldn’t be holding each other back. The more we stand for what is right, the more positive this world could become. We should be standing for each other, with each other because we all deserve education and we all deserve equality. We are all human beings after all, we should be able to treat each other as such. Treat someone as they are no different from you, they may have shorter hair, or a different skin color, or different genitals, but they should still receive respect. They should have respect because who are we to judge them for simply existing? Bad people will lie and cheat and have their name tarnished for what they are, but what gives you the right to tarnish and ruin someone for being a little different than you? I believe in equality, I believe you have the right to your own opinion. Except if your “opinion” is actively hurting others, because when someone says ‘All Lives Matter’, why are they only talking about the ones important in their own life?
Susan Faludi unfolds a world of male domination and its interrelationships within its confines and places women in the center of her story. Indeed it truly took an extremely self-confident woman to even entertain the idea of entering an all-male academic college like the Citadel, whose front gate practically reads like that of a young boys fort that makes the bold statement, “No girls allowed they have coodies.” Shannon Falkner was a strong willed woman with an immense amount of confidence to completely omit her gender on the Citadel application to enter this college. As if gender was not an issue, or should have never been an issue in
They develop four main themes surrounding their finds: leaving aggressive social environments, facing 'coming out' in meaningful ways, remembering the social environment, and turning challenges into opportunities and strengths (Askura and Craig 2014: 254-5). Asakura and Craig confirm that life did not automatically get better for these participants. They conclude, “future activism and media campaigns should incorporate stories on how LGBTQ people’s lives are getting better and focus on how we as a society can make it better for today’s LGBTQ youths” (Askura and Craig 2014: 265). Asakura and Craig cover detailed information and exceptional insight to whether or not the “It Gets Better” campaign has had an impact on LGBTQ youths. In comparison to Kidd’s “Not that There’s Anything Wrong with That: Sexuality Perspectives,” this article gives personal quotes on suicide instead of just insight. This source perceives the argument that life does not automatically get better for LGBTQ youth after watching an inspirational “It Gets Better” campaign video. However, the question still hangs whether or not the “It Gets Better” campaign has provided enough strength and motivation to decrease the overall amount of LGBTQ youth
It is a danger, both mentally and physically, to these transgender students attending an all women’s school. I believe Padawer does a fine job informing us as readers on a modern issue like transgender through stories of students at Wellesley College. They face problems such as bullying, humiliation, and sexual assault every day, and the problem is often neglected because they are
Transgendered people in America have made many great strides since the 1990s. They have encountered violence, lack of health care, and the loss of homes, jobs, family and friends. There have been many phases of the struggle of being transgendered in America over the years. The current phase we must be in now is equal rights. There are many variations of discrimination against the transgendered community. In our society we simply do not like what we do not understand. It is easier to discriminate than to try and understand. We are all created different and we should appreciate our differences. The change must come by addressing the views of the public. There is much justification in the unequal rights of transgendered peoples. The Human Rights Campaign has been started to achieve equal rights for all Americans including the LGBQ community. A serious injustice is in the world of sports. Professional sports are one of societies major traditions totally based on rules and regulations that are meant to preserve the integrality of the games, but may not be inclusive to all its players.
Transgender is an umbrella term, meaning an individual’s gender-identity does not align with their assigned sex at birth. Although transgender is a protected class in eighteen states, these individuals still face discrimination within the country and around the world (“Non-Discrimination Laws”). Transgender is not a lifestyle, no one chooses to live their life constantly being discriminated against. Transgender issues should be more educated on and their lives should be more protected.
In paragraph 10, Fraas proclaims, “In another study of transgender K-12 students, 31 percent reported verbal harassment by teachers or staff for their gender. Another 5 percent reported physical assault assault by teachers and 3 percent reported sexual assault…53 percent of those lost to anti-queer hate murders in 2012 were trans women. ” Though Fraas uses statistics for this quote, any parent would feel awe struck by how mistreated these students are in school. This quote is important, because it can be anyone’s child and for that reason Fraas is able to get other college’s attention by sending them a message that parents want their kids to go to a safe school. If colleges openly accept trans students, parents will want to send their children to that college over an un-accepting college where these percentages are more likely to come
Early April 2016, North Carolina passed a law restricting governments from passing laws that are discriminatory. This law is intended to protect Transgender people from discrimination. Discrimination against Transgenders is against the law, and it has stirred up arguments throughout the nation. With more and more people standing up against discrimination regarding Transgenders, the debate about Transgenders is now nationwide. Unfortunately, Transgenders still continue to face public discrimination due to misinformation and misleading statements from the media.
An individual should be able to make his or her own decisions about how they live their life. Unfortunately though, not everyone feels the same way about this. That is how the controversy is created. This is why transgender rights should be strengthened in America not only because it is morally correct, but also because it would ease the lives of the people within this group, reduce the discrimination and harassment rates of transgender individuals, and help establish awareness. Living life as a transgender person is not easy.
Currently in today’s society, coming out as gay is easier than admitting to a serious mental problem. This effect puts a burden on teens who suffer from problems and don’t know where to go; which led to the increase of teen suicides as seen in the media. In the average classroom size, about three of the twenty-four students have depression; not mentioning other common disorders such as bipolar disorder, panic disorder, ADHD, conduct disorder, and eating disorders. Without better programs in schools to prevent and inform about mental disorders, the current taboo on them, the bullying of students suffering, and the romanticization of diseases will continue to increase the negative effect mental disorders have on teens.
Transgender Rights and Gender Neutral Bathrooms Cassidy Howell No one wants to feel like they do not belong or like they are not cared for. Transgender people are just like everyone else and deserve to be treated equally as cisgendered people. According to Sam Killerman, being transgendered means living "as a member of a gender other than that expected based on sex assigned at birth. " This definition is extremely important because a transgender person is still a person.
Instead, we should try to walk in the shoes of a transgender person and see all of the things they fear on a daily basis. Nearly “63.4% of transgender students reported avoiding bathrooms” at their school (Transgender Students). These students should not have the be afraid to use the restroom at school. As people, they should have the right to do what makes them happy. I personally believe that myself nor does anyone else have the right to tell someone they can not do what makes them happy. As long as someone is not putting themselves or others in danger, then they should be able to do as they please.
Transgender people deserve to have all the rights that a non-transgender person has. As a person who assigns herself to her assigned gender, I can go to the doctor at anytime with any problem and can get treated very easily. Unfortunately, people that identify as transgender do not have the same rights as I do. A transgender person by definition is: “someone whose gender identity-that is, an individual’s internal sense of being male or female-does not align with his or her assigned sex” (Barry).
He or she is often discriminated against and they aren’t able to live to their fullest potential, without the acceptance of society. It’s important to understand that transgender people want to be accepted for who they are. They make the decision to change their gender to make themselves happy inside and out. Despite the differences of gender identity, a person shouldn’t be limited to activities they wish to engage in. They aren’t the ordinary male or female, but they do deserve to be treated with respect and they should be able to live
Transgender people are no strangers to society: the concept of not feeling comfortable in one's birth-assigned gender has been around since man can remember. It's quite puzzling to see that many centuries later, people still treat transgender people of an alien-like nature, of some sort of non-human species. Transgender people have been discriminated for long enough. The discrimination sent towards them is wrong: they're just humans who made changes to their lives for the better as all people have. Transgender people are regular people who do not deserve the amount of discrimination directed towards them as they get right now.
This paper will focus upon the stigma and discrimination that transgender individuals experience in todays’ society. It will also delve into the history of the social movement towards equality; while identifying the current political trends in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. Stringer, (2013), states that the word transgender is a broad term that describes a diverse group of individuals that identify with a gender different from that in to which they were born. Transgender individuals face many adversities in their daily lives. They are at risk of experiencing such difficulties as mental illness, substance abuse low self-esteem, and, suicide anxiety (Mizock, & Mueser, 2014). Individuals who discriminate against the transgender community are labeled