Bathroom Rules to Keep Students Safe

Last October, the board of the East Aurora (Ill.) School District took an important step [2] toward protecting the rights of transgendered students by unanimously passing a policy to enhance its existing anti-bullying policy. Four days later, however, under pressure from parents, community members and the Illinois Family Institute (designated as a hate group by the SPLC), the board rescinded the policy.

Meanwhile, last November in Oakland, Calif., the school board [3] unanimously passed a nondiscrimination/harassment and transgender policy. There was no hoopla of media coverage, no outside pressure and no discussion. Every one was on the same page. A vote was captured and archived online. The policy aims to protect the privacy of transgender and gender nonconforming youth and ensure that students can use bathroom facilities that match their gender identity. Similar policies are already in place in the City of San Francisco, San Francisco Unified School District, and the City of Oakland. It seemed an easy call for the school board.

Getting to that call was a challenge. It started with an internal debate at our school about Raul [4]. The debate caused us to seek legal counsel and ultimately landed the policy on the school board’s agenda.

Raul is a ninth-grader who cut class on the first day of school, but showed up on the second wearing skinny jeans, ballet flats, and a Minnie Mouse embellished T-shirt. He (the pronoun he prefers) carried a purse draped across his front, wore his hair long and curled, and applied his makeup with a heavy hand. He chose to be on the girls’ team in a game early in the school year when students were asked to separate by gender. It could have been easy to make assumptions about his sexual orientation.

As educators we have to protect Raul’s right to be whoever he is right now without invading his privacy or forcing him to define his gender or sexuality. Our process might have been easier with a student who was forthcoming, advocated for himself, and met academic standards. But things were more complicated with Raul because instead of going to class, he was often found in the girls’ bathroom. We could only surmise that he avoided class because he was unwilling to face his academic shortcomings, to which his files pointed out many. Or, perhaps like many LGBT youth, he was skipping class because he felt unsafe. According to a 2009 Gay, Lesbian and Straight Education Network’s (GLSEN) study, 82 percent [5] of transgender youth report feeling unsafe at school. Bathroom safety is a big part of it. In a 2002 survey [6] conducted by the San Francisco Human Rights Commission, “nearly 50 percent of respondents reported having been harassed or assaulted in a public bathroom” if required to use the bathroom that corresponds to their biological sex rather than their gender identity or expression. Still, in order for Raul to feel safe, he needed to also be part of the larger community. Missing class was preventing that from happening.

In our small school community, most people were relatively accepting of Raul’s appearance and use of the girls’ bathroom. But there were a few exceptions. One student protested that it was against his religion to see someone like Raul. A few students and their families complained to the principal about seeing a boy in the girls’ bathroom, arguing that it compromised the safety of the girls. The Transgender Law Center [7] in San Francisco, debunks this idea in their publication “Peeing in Peace: A Resource Guide for Transgender Activists and Allies [8].” They write, “The truth is that the current bathroom situation does not adequately ensure women’s safety. Putting a sign that says ‘women’ on the door of a bathroom does not stop people who want to harm women from entering.” In reality, a transgender boy like Raul is in more danger by entering the boys’ bathroom from other boys.

Two California Education Codes, AB 537 and AB 887 [9], protect Raul and students like Raul from discrimination and bullying. How schools do this is another question. At our school, it was suggested that Raul use the staff bathroom instead of having to choose male or female. Not a good choice. This would emphasize his difference and draw attention from other students who notice him headed to the staff restroom.

Now that our district has adopted a policy that states students are allowed to use the bathroom most closely aligned with their gender presentation, we can perhaps focus on reversing Raul’s desire to skip class instead of worrying about which bathroom he is hiding out in.

Adopting a policy that protects Raul is essential, not just for Raul but for all LGBT youth. The truth is most transgendered students are experts at hiding their difference because for many of them, their safety depends on it. As a result, school officials can’t know whom to protect against targeted bullying. Students, on the other hand, almost always pick up on subtle differences. Policies to protect transgender youth should be in place before they are needed, which means now. Hopefully the East Aurora School District school board will continue to fight for what they already know is right.

Thomas is an English teacher in California.