Transgender Bathroom Rights

Research Report

there were many different points people

made on the topic.

By: Kayla Brett

English 101W

Writer, Lisa Rein, for The Washington Post

wrote, A person who identifies as a man
should be permitted to use mens bathrooms,
and a person who identifies as a woman
should be permitted to use womens
restrooms. (4)

Introduction
For people apart of the transgender
community, using the bathroom isnt as
simple as it would be for someone who is
not transgender. Transgender people want to
be able to use the same bathroom as the
gender they identify as freely.
There are many states have made laws to
protect transgender bathroom rights.
However, there are still plenty of states that
have gone against their rights and have
enforced laws that still leave people in the
transgender community as outcasts.
There are plenty of people that support the
transgender community and feel that since
they identify as the opposite gender, they
should have the right to use that genders
bathroom freely. While those against
transgender people using the same bathroom
as the gender they identify as think it is
inappropriate and a violation to others in the
bathroom.
There are people that feel there needs to be
laws protecting the rights of transgender
people using the bathroom they are most
comfortable using. But, there are still many
people that feel there should be laws placing
requirements for transgender people to use
the bathroom they want to use.

Experts
Specifically, the question underlying the
research for this report was, what are the
issues transgender people are facing for
using the bathroom they want, and those
who are not transgender in the bathrooms
with them. When researching this issue,

In the article, For Transgender Americans,

Legal Battles Over Restrooms, written by
the editorial board from The New York
Times, the writer wrote this article to inform
people that arent educated enough on the
topic and for people that want to know more
about the issues involving transgender
bathroom rights. The main idea of this
article was basically to inform the readers
about debates throughout the United States,
on whether there should be guidelines put in
place for transgender people to use the
bathroom of the gender they choose to
identify by. The article talks about how
states and jurisdictions have set guidelines
that have caused the debates going on in the
country today.
Author Cristina Silva wrote, Show A Birth
Certificate To Use The Bathroom? Toughest
US Anti-Transgender Bill Draws Anger, for
the Canadian Press, providing her stance on
the issue. This article was mainly about how
there should be a law requiring everyone to
show their birth certificate in order to use a
public restroom. In the article Silva includes
a fact on a few states in the United States
which said, Other states, including Idaho
and Ohio, do not allow birth certificate
changes for gender, according to the
American Civil Liberties Union. (2)
Providing this piece information gives
readers an idea on how transgender people
have to go through many legal processes to
become recognized as the gender they want
to be. Transgender people that live in the

states that do not allow gender changes on

birth certificates, will never be able to fully
identify as the gender they feel they are,
forcing them to use the bathroom of their
born gender.

transgender person must show ID to prove

they have legally changed their gender to
use the bathroom they choose to use? 12%
of participants said yes and 88% of
participants said no.

In, Florida Public Bathroom Bill Upsets

Transgender People, by Brendan Farrington
explains how there was a bill passed in
Tallahassee, Florida that forces transgender
people to use the same bathrooms, fitting
rooms, and locker rooms as the gender they
were born as. The only transgender people
that will be allowed to use the bathroom as
the gender they identify by are the ones that
have a license, passport, or birth certificate
that proves that they have done every step to
be identified as the opposite sex. After
informing readers on the bill that was
recently passed in Florida, the Farrington
incorporates quotes from a transgender
woman into the article saying, "You all just
don't get it. I'm so scared of all of you. You
can put me in jail for being me. This bill is
government intrusion at its worst," Sullivan
said. "I'm not a protected class. I'm a throw
away piece of trash in this country of
freedom and liberty." (2) Throughout
reading all four of these articles, there are a
few differences readers may notices.

The research that was found for this activity

suggests that there is a huge divide on
whether transgender people should use the
same bathroom as the gender they identify
as or the same bathroom as the gender they
were born as. The research appears to
confirm that there are many strong opinions
on the topic which urge people to fight
against transgender rights for their own
comfort. Researching this topic has shown
that many transgender people are feeling
hurt and uncomfortable by some of the
choices being made by states.

Survey
To get a better understand on how the
general public feels about the transgender
bathroom rights issue, a survey was made.
There were 25 participants offered to take
the survey. Out of the 25 participants, 60%
said they feel that transgender people that
has not had genital surgery should use the
same bathroom as the gender they identify
as. While, 40% said they should use the
same bathroom as they gender they were
born as. For the question, Do you believe a

Significance
The controversy on whether transgender
people should use the same bathroom as the
gender they identify as or the same
bathroom as the gender they were born as
has become huge in the United States.
Throughout all the data that was collected
and researched, people can learn that the
transgender bathroom rights will be a
controversy that will not end until the
transgender community is granted their
bathroom rights.
But, people can also learn about how others
feel on the issue and hear different opinions
on how the conflict should be approached.
People should care about this topic because
the United States is supposed to be a country
of freedom. When people do not feel
comfortable as the gender they were born as
they should still be equally apart of society.