Megan Burke

Pd. 2

America’s Transgender Oppression Epidemic

Fear and fight against the “other” is natural for Americans, and has been throughout

slavery, the women’s suffrage movement, the Civil Rights Movement, the fight for LGBT+

rights, and countless other struggles. But when oppression occurs in this country, it is essential to

realize that no one is an “other.” Recognizing the humanity of others is crucial when observing

oppression. Discrimination against LGBT+ individuals has been a hot-topic issue in the past two

decades, and attitudes toward gay and lesbian people seem to have improved since the decision

of Obergefell v. Hodges, which required states to recognize the right of same-sex couples to

marry. Despite this improvement in attitudes, transgender and gender nonconforming people still

face acute discrimination and persecution, even within the LGBT community. Transgender

people face erasure of their identity everyday, and are constant victims of violence, bullying, and

discrimination. In public places, they are forced to use the bathroom in a place where they may

feel uncomfortable and even unsafe. Their treatment often violates nondiscrimination laws that

already exist. Several states are aiming to protect transgender people with specific

nondiscrimination legislation regarding gender identity. However, this is insufficient and results

in inconsistency in transgender safety throughout the nation. Transgender people must have their

free will and rights protected in public establishments by federal law.

Transgender people face extreme violence and hatred throughout their lifetimes, and by

offering no protection for them against discrimination, the federal government is complicit in the

harm this causes. Most people who identify as transgender are relentlessly bullied from a young

age in schools and even by adults. According to the National Center of Transgender Equality,

82% of transgender youth do not feel safe in school (“Transgender Bullying”). Due to the

prevalence of transgender bullying in and out of schools, 45% of transgender people from the
ages of 18-44 attempt suicide, compared to only 4.6% of the general population (Haas et al). Not

only is the mental health of transgender people threatened, but there is also an extreme amount of

violence committed against them. According to the Human Rights Campaign, since January

2013, there have been reports of at least 102 transgender people who have been victims of fatal

violence. Many, such as Ava Le’Ray Barrin and Ally Steinfeld, are killed before they even reach

legal adulthood. Only 16 states and the District of Columbia have laws that address hate crimes

based on gender identity (“A Time to Act”). This is not enough. The federal government must

protect the physical safety of transgender people by punishing hate crimes on the basis of gender

identity and pass nondiscrimination laws to protect transgender mental health and well-being.

One of the most frequent forms of gender identity discrimination is not allowing

transgender people to use the bathroom of their choice in public establishments. The common

purpose of bills that restrict people to use the bathroom of their assigned gender is to prevent

predators pretending to be transgender from entering the women’s bathroom and attacking a

woman inside. However, this legislation both harms transgender people and does not actually

protect against such events. Law enforcement officials in states with bathroom nondiscrimination

laws have reported no increase in sexual assault or rape after the legislation was put in place, and

no more predators entering women’s bathrooms than in any other state (Steinmetz). In Iowa,

there is a nondiscrimination law on the basis of gender identity that covers public

accommodations, and according to a spokesperson for a Des Moines police department, “[sexual

predators are] gonna behave as they’re gonna behave no matter what the laws are” (Steinmetz).

According to CNN, 20 law enforcement agencies in states with anti-discrimination policies

regarding gender identity stated that there were no bathroom assaults after the laws were passed
(Grinberg and Stewart). These laws serve no purpose but to contribute to the institutional

oppression of transgender individuals.

With both the majority of Americans supporting transgender rights, and the existence of

legislation that offers protection to people on the basis of gender, the next step is to create federal

law mandating nondiscrimination. According to a Reuters poll from March of 2017, 53% of

Americans oppose bathroom laws requiring people to use the bathroom of their gender assigned

at birth (Stein). Another Reuters poll from June of 2017 showed 58% of Americans as supporting

transgender people’s right to serve in the military (Kahn). These two polls show a trend toward

the majority of Americans supporting transgender rights. As well as the majority of Americans

supporting transgender rights, there are some laws already in place that could be interpreted to

protect the rights of LGBT individuals. 19 states and the District of Columbia already have non

discrimination laws applying to LGBT people in public accomodations (“Non-Discrimination

Laws”). Additionally, Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 is enforced to include non

discrimination of gender identity in employment, most notably by the Equal Employment

Opportunity Commission (“What You Should Know”). There have also been several Supreme

and Federal Court decisions that have upheld this viewpoint (“Examples of Court Decisions”).

With the amount of popular support for transgender rights and the laws that are already

protecting transgender people, there is need for a more specific, more effective law that protects

transgender people from discrimination no matter where they may go.

Transgender people in America face constant blows to their identity from their schools,

their peers, and even their own families. There is extreme violence committed against them, with

bullying, suicide, and murder being astronomically more common against transgender people

than against the general population. Anti-transgender discrimination, especially in regards to

which bathroom they are allowed to use, occurs often and serves no purpose for the safety of the

other customers. Public attitudes toward transgender people are taking a positive turn and many

states have passed laws protecting transgender people from discrimination. With the support of

the nation behind them, Congress must pass a federal law requiring nondiscrimination for

transgender people in public establishments. This is just the first step to protecting transgender

identity and lives, and is absolutely necessary if America wants to see itself on the right side of

history.

Works Cited

“Examples of Court Decisions Supporting Coverage of LGBT-Related Discrimination

Under Title VII.” Examples of Court Decisions Holding LGBT-Related Discrimination

Actionable Under Title VII,

www.eeoc.gov/eeoc/newsroom/wysk/lgbt_examples_decisions.cfm.

“Fatal Violence Against Transgender People In America 2017.” A Time to Act.

Grinberg, Emanuella, and Dani Stewart. “3 Myths in the Transgender Bathroom Debate.”

CNN, Cable News Network, 7 Mar. 2017, www.cnn.com/2017/03/07/health/transgender-

bathroom-law-facts-myths/index.html.

Haas, Ann, et al. “Suicide Attempts among Transgender and Gender Non-Conforming

Adults.”

Kahn, Chris. “Exclusive: Majority of Americans Support Transgender Military Service.”

Reuters, Thomson Reuters, 29 July 2017, www.reuters.com/article/us-usa-military-

transgender-poll/exclusive-majority-of-americans-support-transgender-military-service-

poll-idUSKBN1AD2BL.

“Non-discrimination Laws.” Movement Advancement Project | Non-Discrimination

Laws, www.lgbtmap.org/equality-maps/non_discrimination_laws.

Stein, Letitia. “Americans Oppose Bathroom Laws Limiting Transgender Rights: Poll.”

Reuters, Thomson Reuters, 10 Mar. 2017, www.reuters.com/article/us-usa-lgbt-

poll/americans-oppose-bathroom-laws-limiting-transgender-rights-poll-

idUSKBN16H1A4.

Steinmetz, Katy. “Transgender Bathroom: Advocates Say 'Predator' Is Myth.” Time,

Time, time.com/4314896/transgender-bathroom-bill-male-predators-argument/.

“Transgender Bullying: A National Epidemic.” NoBullying - Bullying & CyberBullying

Resources, 22 Dec. 2015, nobullying.com/transgender-bullying/.

“What You Should Know About EEOC and the Enforcement Protections for LGBT

Workers.” What You Should Know: EEOC and Enforcement Protections for LGBT

Workers,

www.eeoc.gov/eeoc/newsroom/wysk/enforcement_protections_lgbt_workers.cfm.