Transgender Bathroom Debate

So often, people have preconceived notions about what it means to be transgender.  For the longest time, media portrayed transgender individuals as freakish or deviant.  Images of men dressed in women’s clothing with bad wigs and clown-like make-up littered television and movie screens.  It was not uncommon to see transgender people being depicted as street walkers, serial killers, or pedophiles.  As a result, negative stereotypes and misinformation plagued the transgender community.

I am not transgender, nor do I claim to know the plight of all transgender individuals.  However, as a PhD candidate with a concentration in Industrial/Organization Psychology, I have a professional interest of transgender people in the workforce.

While working as a college instructor, I met a transgender male who also worked at the school.  He dressed, spoke, and interacted the way society has conditioned us to believe a man should.  In fact, most people he encountered had no idea he had been born a female.  For all intents and purposes, he was a bona fide male.  As such, he used the male bathroom.

When the debate regarding transgender bathroom bills arose, I became perplexed.  “What is the big deal?”  I wondered.  Proponents of so-called bathroom bills posit they would protect public safety by ensuring that all people, including transgender men and women, use public restrooms that correlate with their sex at birth.  Opponents, on the other hand, insist their impact is much wider.  Analysts call them thinly veiled attempts to discriminate against and stigmatize transgender people to score political points.

Supporters use various arguments to make their case—some have a connection with public safety; others doubt the entire notion of gender identity.  But is there empirical evidence to back some of their claims?  What can we deduce from places with protections for transgender people?  Here is an assessment of how those allegations hold up to scrutiny.

One claim alleges sexual predators will take advantage of public accommodation laws and policies covering transgender people to attack women and children in bathrooms.  The fact of the matter is anti-discrimination protections covering gender identity are not new, and there is no evidence to support they lead to attacks in public facilities.

According to CNN, as of March 2017, 19 states, the District of Columbia, and more than 200 municipalities have anti-discrimination laws and ordinances permitting transgender people to utilize public facilities that correlate to their gender identity.  Whenever the subject comes up in the news, law enforcement agencies, state human rights commissions, and prosecutors have steadfastly denied there is any equivalence between such policies and an increase in assaults.  Most notably, civil rights activists argue there are more reports of transgender people being assaulted in bathrooms that do not correspond to their gender identity.

In one of the largest surveys of transgender and gender non-conforming Americans ever conducted, 70% of respondents reported being denied access, physically assaulted, or verbally harassed in public bathrooms.  Conducted by UCLA's Williams Institute in 2013 before the nation's capital passed anti-discrimination protections, the survey built on previous research with similar outcomes.

Another claim asserts being transgender is not a legitimate condition.  This position puts forth that transgender people are mentally ill and should not be afforded the same healthcare guarantees or legal protection as gay and lesbian Americans.  Meanwhile, an overwhelming majority of mainstream medical, psychological, and psychiatric communities concur that being transgender is not a mental illness or fabrication.  Plainly put, it is a valid state in which a person's gender does not align with what was assigned at birth.  According to a study published in The Lancet in 2016, typifying transgender identity as a mental disorder contributes to uncertain human rights violations, legal status, as well as impediments to suitable health care.

A condition is defined as a mental illness when it causes considerable distress. According to the American Psychological Association, the American Medical Association, and other healthcare organizations, for many, merely being transgender does not cause dysfunction; it is the social ignominy and obstacles to articulating a person's identity that cause complications.

Although there is a lot of anxiety linked to this issue, it seems to be based on fear instead of facts. Knowing this, it is truly demoralizing to see so many states, and now our federal government, make a conscious choice to treat transgender people with what appears to be hatred.

Dwan Johnson holds an MBA in Marketing and is currently pursuing a PhD in Industrial/Organizational Psychology with a concentration in Leadership Development and Coaching. She is the author of eight traditionally published books and her articles have appeared in numerous online and print publications. She resides in a suburb of Atlanta with her husband and daughter and works as an Instructional Coordinator.

Gersen, J. S. (2016, May 24). The transgender bathroom debate and the looming Title IX crisis. The New Yorker24. Retrieved from: https://www.newyorker.com/news/news-desk/public-bathroom-regulations-could-create-a-title-ix-crisis

Steinmetz, K. (2015). Everything you need to know about the debate over transgender people and bathrooms. Time28. Retrieved from: http://time.com/3974186/transgender-bathroom-debate/

Stern, M. J., Oehme, K., Stern, N., Urbach, E., Simonsen, E., & Garcia, A. (October 12, 2017). The judicial and generational dispute over transgender rights. Stanford Law & Policy Review, 29(1), Forthcoming; FSU College of Law, Public Law Research Paper No. 859. Available at SSRN: https://ssrn.com/abstract=3051970

Share this post:

Comments on "Transgender Bathroom Debate"

Comments 10-5 of 45

- Monday, March 25, 2024
2014272348

World's No.1 Lost Love Spells caster and Black Magic master (+27717403094 ) (+27717403094 ) ” I am able to access and give advice in many ways: Channeling dreams, casting spells, numerology, fortune analysis, tarot reading and many more. My powers promotes palm reading, holistic healing, casting spells, and also communication between individuals and their ancestors any time and help you fore seeing evil and bad spirits so that you can overcome them Do you need to Finding balance and happiness in life ? Fulfil your life?s purpose & destiny (+27717403094 ) 1.I fix broken relationships, Restore marriages 2. I have got charms/spell to take away bad luck & give good luck in life, Binding Lovers together 3. Business attractions more customers and Promotions at jobs 4. Get job Promotions by Abdul 5. I chase away evil/ witchcraft, ghost, bad spell, curses, bad dreams on you. 6. Bring back lost loves, Resurrect your Ex- Lover 7. Make court cases, divorces, bad debts to disappear. 8. I have herbs for losing weight and Improve your Bedroom Experience 9. I solve financial and domestic difficulties 10. I have a spell charm to bring back stolen goods. 11. I have sale quick potions to boost customer in business.(+27717403094 ) 12. I make you gain promotions at work place. 13. Get Quick Marriage With The Lover Of Your Heart 14. Get Protection At Working Place IE Protect Your Job Charms 15/ Magic Ring For Luck,gambling,protection,money,business,love,wealt hy 16. Quit smoking, Alcohol and Drugs 17. Find your soulmate Lover 18. Heal Barrenness and produce TWINS 19. Stop Cheating to your Partner 20. Remove Bad Luck, Tolokosh, Curses, and Cleanse you 21. Divert Future Problems 22. TALISMAN RING for commanding Powers, Fame Contact: (+27717403094 ) EMAIL;basserabdul59gmail.com Website:https://africanancientspells.mystrikingly.com/ https://rumble.com/v4httqr-27717403094-astrologer-easy-love-spells-that-really-work-instantly.html lovespellsmoneyspellsmagicringspowerspellsprotection.wordpress.com

- Monday, March 25, 2024
2014272348

What a powerful spell caster, all my life i have never seen a powerful man like Abdul Basser, i have been playing lottery game for years now and i have never won any reasonable amount of money i was just checking things online and i stumble on a testimony about Abdul Basser on how he helped someone with a lottery game and the person won a very big amount of money at first i never believed in the fairy tails but i just decided to give it a try, so i contacted Abdul Basser through his website at http://www.africanspellscaster.co.za and he told me what i need to do, so i did what he asked me to do, the next day in the morning he sent me some lottery number to play so played the game, to my greatest surprise i won a very big amount of money $17millions i was shocked i couldn’t close my eyes because it was a life transformation for me, i just want the whole world to help me thank Abdul Basser for transforming my life i promised him i was going to tell the whole world about him, you can also contact him if you need his help too. You can reach him via his email [email protected] or WhatsApp him +27717403094, you can also visit his website https://africanancientspells.mystrikingly.com///youtube.com/shorts/QQazQvYZPuo? https://rumble.com/v4httqr-27717403094-astrologer-easy-love-spells-that-really-work-instantly.html Regards, Isaac from USA,CHICAGO.

- Sunday, March 24, 2024
2015076002

FULFILLING MY LIFELONG DREAM OF WINNING THE LOTTERY BECAME A REALITY; THANKS TO LORD BUBUZA, the genuine spell caster who unveiled the winning numbers to me through his lottery spell. Acting on a friend's recommendation, I reached out to Lord Bubuza via WhatsApp at +1 920 474 6543, and he expertly guided me through the process. As a result, I clinched a staggering $4 million in the Massachusetts Lottery "100X Cash" draw. My ticket was purchased at Summit Variety in Peabody, and ever since, my financial landscape has experienced a remarkable transformation. If you harbor aspirations of lottery success, waste no time in contacting Lord Bubuza via email at Lordbubuzamiraclework @ hotmail . com or on WhatsApp at +1 920 474 6543

- Sunday, March 24, 2024
2015076002

FULFILLING MY LIFELONG DREAM OF WINNING THE LOTTERY BECAME A REALITY; THANKS TO LORD BUBUZA, the genuine spell caster who unveiled the winning numbers to me through his lottery spell. Acting on a friend's recommendation, I reached out to Lord Bubuza via WhatsApp at +1 920 474 6543, and he expertly guided me through the process. As a result, I clinched a staggering $4 million in the Massachusetts Lottery "100X Cash" draw. My ticket was purchased at Summit Variety in Peabody, and ever since, my financial landscape has experienced a remarkable transformation. If you harbor aspirations of lottery success, waste no time in contacting Lord Bubuza via email at Lordbubuzamiraclework @ hotmail . com or on WhatsApp at +1 920 474 6543

- Thursday, March 21, 2024
2015076002

MY WINNING WILL BE INCOMPLETE IF I DON'T APPRECIATE LORD BUBUZA, the Lottery spell caster that revealed the numbers to me after casting a lottery spell for me. It has been my heart desire to win the lottery and to win big, My friend told me that lord Bubuza helped him won the lottery after he provided his requirement to cast the spell and advise me to give him a try too so I contacted him on WhatsApp: +1 920 474 6543 and seek for help to win Massachusetts Lottery “100X Cash''. I did as he instructed and provided his requirement to cast the lottery spell, I am a proud winner of $4 million today, I bought my ticket at Summit Variety in Peabody after lord Bubuza finished casting the spell and gave me the numbers to play. I never believed that there were still Genuine spell caster, Lord Bubuza is a great seer and has turned my life around financially. Do you like playing the lottery and have never won? Contact him today via email: Lordbubuzamiraclework @ hotmail . com or WhatsApp: +1 920 474 6543

Please login to comment