Society is becoming more and more comfortable with the idea that we all just might not be created equally. We all have our differences. Some of us are black, some of us are white, some are tall, and some are short. Some of us may have even been born into the wrong body. But should we all be treated equally? This is where the lines seem to blur.
The lives of LGBTQ individuals are becoming more and more mainstream in the United States. Alternative lifestyles are gaining acceptance more and more every day. Our society is growing to accept the idea of gay marriage, albeit slower than it should be. Caitlyn Jenner has introduced herself to the world, and is celebrated for her bravery. These moments in history are all paving the way for younger individuals to realize their own personal journey, and to find the strength and courage to be who they truly are; to announce the truth of their identity. They are receiving messages from all walks of life to stand up and be who they are, unapologetically. So why do the freedoms stop at which bathroom they use?
Many editorials have surfaced as of late regarding the growing issue of transgendered elementary and high school students utilizing the designated bathroom for the gender that they identify with. Some non-transgender students and their parents have voiced concern about the supposed impropriety of the situation, referring to the vulnerability of the students who suddenly find themselves sharing a semi-private space with a member of the opposite sex. To address the issue, we can look at a district that has been successfully integrating transgender and typically developing students since 2004. The Los Angeles Unified School District has been allowing students to utilize bathrooms and locker rooms according to their gender identity, with minimal complaints, over the course of the past 12 years (Bosman & Rich, 2015).
According to Judy Chiasson, coordinator in the Human Relations, Diversity and Equity Department for the Los Angeles Unified School District, the current generation of students tend to be more modest, tend not to undress in public areas, and use the private stalls in bathrooms (Bosman & Rich, 2015). She further explains that because of this modesty, most students don’t even know whether a fellow student is transgender (Bosman & Rich, 2015).
So why all the fuss? Many of us continue to operate based on our stereotypes of various different groups. Perhaps a way to address these prejudices would be in the form of conflict resolution to diminish the discrimination. There seems to be a blanket acceptance in the Los Angeles school district, but how can we address the issue in more conservative regions of the country?
Schneider, Gruman and Coutts (2012) illustrate the concept of coalition building for breaking down barriers to increase contact as a means of decreasing conflict. These coalition building exercises create opportunity for interaction between opposing groups, for learning about specific individuals belonging to the groups, and introduce cooperative tasks and reward systems for working together (Schneider, Gruman & Coutts, 2012). A well-known practice, typically referred to as the Ben Franklin effect (as it was originally coined by Benjamin Franklin), posits that an effective means of establishing a positive relationship with another is to get that person to do you a favor. Creating these moments for relying on a person from the opposing group may prove to be the perfect opportunity for breaking down the stereotypes. Given time, these opportunities may allow not only students, but everyone, to shed their prejudice and coexist in cooperation.
Bosman, J., & Rich, M. (2015, November 03). As Transgender Students Make Gains, Schools Hesitate at Bathrooms. Retrieved from http://www.nytimes.com/2015/11/04/us/as-transgender-students-make-gains-schools-hesitate-at-bathrooms.html?_r=0
Schneider, F. W., Gruman, J. A., & Coutts, L. M. (2012). Applied social psychology: Understanding and addressing social and practical problems (2nd ed.). Thousand Oaks, CA: SAGE Publications.
Great post and wonderful to hear that one county has broken down these barriers. I think that it is human nature to question what we do not understand and to associate ourselves with things or situations that make us comfortable. No one likes to leave their comfort zone, right? And we can define these other parts of the country as being more conservative but I like to call them “comfortable”. Their routines and patterns minimize and stress and risk. Allowing this new “thing” to encroach onto their comfortable territory reduces their happiness and increase their anxiety. But what happens when they are faced, personally, with a change that forces them to step outside their comfort zone. Perhaps it is the loss of a long-held job, a divorce from a high-school sweetheart or a move to a new city. We are selfish creatures and while we will make it work for our own situation, we tend to shun the introduction of another person’s situation. If we want to make the idea of unisex bathrooms more accepted, then we have to make it relevant to the person resisting it. If we fail to do that, then we continue to fight an uphill battle.