Lawsuit Challenges New Gender Protections in CA Schools

[justatransgirl]

Ok - for our weekly outrage. Recently in CA a law was passed to enable transgender and GLB students in public schools safe access to the bathrooms matching their gender perception.

A religious extremist group with members on a local school board has filed a lawsuit to block it's implementation here in San Diego - pushing us once again into the front of the war on transgendered people in the United States by religious zealots.

http://www.signonsandiego.com/uniont...m28gender.html

Below is my response to our local GLBT Center and activism board for entertainment and comment.

Hugs,
TS Jamie

<<<<
To TASC, etc:
I assume we are all aware of the article in the UT today regarding the lawsuit filed in San Diego Federal Court on Tuesday(??) to set aside SB777 which provides bathroom and other protections to transgendered and GLB children in public schools.

One of the primary complaintants is a member of the Grossmont School District. Several other board members are listed as in support of those who would discriminate against our transgendered children by setting aside the first concrete legislation to protect such children from homophobic attack and hate crimes.

The fact this lawsuit was filed in San Diego I believe requires a decisive, immediate and resounding response from our local trans and GLBT community.

My suggestion would be a presence and protest at the Grossmont School Board meetings. Political action to discredit and remove these homophobic board members for non-secular activities.

An editorial or paid political advertisement in the UT refuting this action against us by using our local Federal Courts to propagate hate. And a much higher visible educational presence in the local public school systems by the GLBT community at large.

I believe we need to actively support / finance gay-straight alliances at all SD schools, we definately need to address the homophobic issues at SDSU, we need to expand trans 101 and diversity training at the jr/sr high school and college levels. Our battle for civil rights will be won by the children.

I remember sitting in on an Eager II (a local trans youth support group) meeting a year or two ago, and one young trans boy detailed the situation in his school which precluded him from going to the bathroom all day long. This IS a problem right here in our own city.

I believe this group, the "CA Education Committee and Advocates for Faith and Freedom" which according to the UT has filed 10 lawsuits to block essentially every piece of GLBT legislation needs to be investigated, discredited if possible and stopped.

Obviously these hate orgainzations are far better funded than we are at this time, but if the trans and GLBT communities continue to ignore these attacks and do not decisively respond I see us continuing to take one step forward and two steps back.

Best,
Jamie S >>>>

[NewYorker]

While I don't know the argument behind the lawsuit and don't believe in discrimination, I do have a quibble with how you describe the law. Now this could be me misinterperting what you said and if so I apologize but if the law allows a person access to the bathroom of the opposite sex based sole on their claim of their gender perception I think there's a problem there. gender perception is a difficult thing to quantify without outward confirmation of it. If someone wants access to the bathroom of the opposite sex without being in the process of transitioning or currently dressing as that sex I don't think they should be allowed it. That said, I don't think people who in the process of transition or are currently dressing as the opposite sex should be barred either.