There is a question that many transgender people encounter each day: Which bathroom should I use? One room--the one that your given or biological sex matches--will make you experience dysphoria, which is an extreme aversion to your own body. Dysphoria is extremely distracting and aids, abets, and causes gender-related depression, anxiety, and often, suicide. The other room--the room your actual gender matches--is full of danger. Transgender people who don't "pass" (i.e appear to be cisgender or the sex they were assigned at birth) risk verbal, physical, and sexual assault in bathrooms. Incidents such as those are unfortunately commonplace.
Currently, under House Bill 2, it is illegal for a transgender person to use the bathroom they're most comfortable with; keeping transgender people from making this choice for themselves. Though there is no civil or state punishment for those that break this law, there has been a wave of public support wherein some have become aggressive against transgender people. From hitting them in the back of the head to carrying them out of the ladies room for dressing masculinely, public bathrooms have become a battleground for gender nonconforming people, especially in North Carolina.
Even in Northwood, this has been an issue. Multiple students have experienced verbal abuse from their peers in the bathroom and from their teachers in class. Most of them have resorted to not drinking water and crossing their legs all day, which is both distracting and extremely unhealthy. Something had to be done to protect these vulnerable students and placate those who feared them.
That's where gender-neutral restrooms come in. In three places on the Northwood campus, students of all genders can finally do what they've been needing to do since the first day of school: pee. These rooms are for all genders, which means that transgender AND genderqueer people can use them instead of binarical restrooms. Plus, these rooms are single stall, so there's no risk of dysphoria or abuse.
These restrooms also promote acceptance of transgender people in our school. Transgender people aren't some abstract idea to hate; they're here, they're human, and they pee just like everyone else. By having this visibility, people might think twice about using a slur or making violent jokes.
Restrooms. Who knew they could do so much?
Currently, under House Bill 2, it is illegal for a transgender person to use the bathroom they're most comfortable with; keeping transgender people from making this choice for themselves. Though there is no civil or state punishment for those that break this law, there has been a wave of public support wherein some have become aggressive against transgender people. From hitting them in the back of the head to carrying them out of the ladies room for dressing masculinely, public bathrooms have become a battleground for gender nonconforming people, especially in North Carolina.
Even in Northwood, this has been an issue. Multiple students have experienced verbal abuse from their peers in the bathroom and from their teachers in class. Most of them have resorted to not drinking water and crossing their legs all day, which is both distracting and extremely unhealthy. Something had to be done to protect these vulnerable students and placate those who feared them.
That's where gender-neutral restrooms come in. In three places on the Northwood campus, students of all genders can finally do what they've been needing to do since the first day of school: pee. These rooms are for all genders, which means that transgender AND genderqueer people can use them instead of binarical restrooms. Plus, these rooms are single stall, so there's no risk of dysphoria or abuse.
These restrooms also promote acceptance of transgender people in our school. Transgender people aren't some abstract idea to hate; they're here, they're human, and they pee just like everyone else. By having this visibility, people might think twice about using a slur or making violent jokes.
Restrooms. Who knew they could do so much?