Classrooms As Safe Spaces : Protecting Transgender Rights And Combating Transphobia Through Pedagogy Essay

Attempting suicide is an epidemic in the United States; especially when 41% of transgender individuals have attempted suicide compared 1.6% of the general population (Gay & Lesbian Alliance Against Defamation). Due to this, the question of whether or not transgender youth have a harder, more straining adolescence than their cisgender counterparts rises. Although adolescence can be hard on everyone, experiences such as a school environment, puberty, laws that guarantee protection, family and social acceptance of transgender youth are harder than those of their cisgender counterparts (harder does not necessarily mean correlate with strenuous, the use of harder is aiming more towards different, costly, and possibly more confusing). The revolution for transgender lives is just beginning, change is happening. But in order for change to occur, adequate information on the material needs to be discussed and terminology must be defined and questions must be answered. Questions such as: what do the terms transgender and cisgender actually mean? Why is it important to know the difference between the two terms? What is the difference between transsexual and transgender?

Scholars have been critical of the medical establishment’s and state’s involvement in constructing and policing of transgender identity. These kinds of pressing issues have occupied the small existing literature. There is not much information and studying what is being done on transgender in traditional areas, family studies research, such as their dating behavior and formation of intimate relationships in adulthood. There is little research on the issues around being parents, their children’s experiences with having transgendered parents, as well as relationships in the family as a whole, and relationships in work and school.

Throughout history, it is evident that inequalities and disparities are part of health systems and society. Even after all the success of activism, such as the work from the human rights movement and campaign, inequalities and disparities are still evident today. Especially within minority groups, such as LGBTQ* (lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and queer) individuals – this is not to say that LGBTQ are the only categories when it comes to sexual orientation and gender identities, thus it is followed by a * – and racial groups. Furthermore, it is evident that within minority groups there are specific micro-level groups that experience unique and sometimes even greater amount of inequalities and disparities. For example, the micro-level group of transgender individuals from the LGBTQ* community is one of the many minority groups that experience both medical and social disparities and inequalities.This paper will discuss both the medical and social inequalities and disparities that Transgender Individuals face, including structural violence and intentional violence.

In a recent podcast regarding a transgender high school student being forced to change in the nurse’s office instead of in the locker room with other students addressed the controversy regarding the treatment of members of our society who identify as LGBTQ. Throughout the podcast, multiple individuals have voiced support for the school’s decision to isolate the transgender student when changing. Do to the opinions voiced in the podcast regarding this case, I realized that the treatment of the high school student is only one example of the existing discrimination towards those who identify as LGBTQ. As such, I intend to explore the controversy of LGBTQ and our obligations that we have as members of the same society. Throughout this paper, I

The Lesbian, Gay, Bi, and Transgendered (LGBT) youth population is one of the most vulnerable groups in our community. Being gay does not lead to risky behaviors or bad decision making, rather, societal stigma and discrimination can lead LGBT youth to seek emotional outlets. Today’s society has improved immensely towards the LGBT community, although it has not always been this way. Society can affect a person in shocking ways, influencing one’s unhealthy and unsafe physical and mental behaviors. This current vulnerable population deserves a voice and the simplicity of someone listening to them in order for both sides, accepting and non-accepting, to find a common ground and settle the violence.

The United States is a divided society. We like to categorize ourselves according to political affiliation, race, and religion. We are members of the middle, low-income, or wealthy classes. We choose what seats to sit in during a football game according to the team we are rooting for. It is oddly comforting to know that you belong. All too often, however, transgender youth are denied that sense of ubelonging because they defy society’s categories of male and female. The gender binary divides society into two separate, unequivocal categories that marginalizes transgender youth and directly impacts their emotional health and well-being. Society’s collective response of demeaning, shaming, and violence further increases the divide.

Many social workers have had minimal training and preparation in servicing Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgendered, and Questioning (LGBTQ) clients. It is not uncommon or unlikely that even the most seasoned practitioner will display some form of negative bias or utilize misinformation with assisting these clients. Because the Universe and the norms are steadily changing and evolving we as social workers must do the same to better assist our clients especially our oppressed populations. This research paper will provide an in depth look at the LGBTQ community, in particular the adolescent victimization of LGBTQ students in a school setting. Research suggests that youth who identify as LGBTQ are at greater risk of suicidal thoughts, suicidal attempts,

Transgender issues cover a a multitude of spheres: discrimination (at school, in the workplace, when looking for housing), violence, suicide, and identification through legal documents to name a few. Transgender individuals deal with greater struggles than that of cisgender individuals, or those who identity as the gender which they were assigned at birth. Perhaps one of the greatest struggles transgender individuals have to deal with is acceptance, whether it be acceptance from others or acceptance of themselves. Cisgender individuals, or those who identify with the gender identity given at birth, do not have to worry that their gender identity will be accepted; society has already dictated it to be ‘normal’ and ‘acceptable’ (“Definitions of Terms”). Trans individuals are not afforded this luxury.

In addition to social persecution, people who identify on the LGBTQ spectrum are at a higher risk of experiencing violence In 2010, the FBI reported in a hate crime statistics report that 19.3% of hate crimes in that year were motivated by a sexual orientation bias. Based on national statistics, more than 50% of transgendered youth will attempt suicide at least once by the age of 20 “Statistics About Youth Suicide”. These numbers are shocking, and it’s baffling that these youth have to live under the pressure of violence and mental illness all while being barred from the rights they

LGBTQ youth in particular are at high risk for suicide attempts and completions. In the largest national survey of transgender adults to date,

Discrimination has been a problem for many years, from the slaving of African Americans dating back to 1619, to the Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, and Transgender (LGBT) individuals being shot in the streets a few weeks ago. However one specific group of people, transgendered people have been targeted for decades, yet they haven’t had the mass media coverage as other discrimination issues have. Focusing on their physical abuse, and psychological impact and the substance abuse from the discrimination they face; I hope to highlight these issues and show that they need help fighting this discrimination as well, and this isn’t just an individual problem but the bigger society’s issue.

Out of the 316 million people in the United States of America, nine million of them relate as lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, or questioning collectively known as LGBTQ. This makes up about four percent of the population and while this may seem like a small number, the LGBTQ equal rights movement is as big as ever. While there are many fronts to fight in the war for equal rights, the major points I will be discussing are the history of LGBTQ fight for equal rights, marriage rights and equality, and the mistreatment of LGBTQ youth in regards to bullying in schools, homelessness, and depression/suicide.

The issue of transsexual homelessness and health has been subjected to debate in the recent discussions that underline the paradigms of safety. The people who identify with a gender that is distinct from which is assigned to them at birth are at a greater risk for being subjected to social isolation, emotional and physical trauma, infectious disease, chemical dependency, discrimination, infectious disease, and the limited access housing, employment opportunities, as well as healthcare. Homelessness is the compounding factor to all these risks facing transsexual individuals (Rew, Whittaker, Taylor‐Seehafer Smith, 2005). A misunderstanding of gender variance has resulted in many having negative attitude towards transsexual individuals to the extent of rendering them homeless. The analysis in this paper is aligned to the issue of homeless among the transsexual persons by investigating the entire spectrum of the issue. In a general analysis the paper will highlight the extraordinary conditions that lead to transsexual individuals experiencing homelessness besides the same reasons that the other ‘normal’ individuals are rendered homeless- the inability to afford housing, addiction and mental health problems, being abused physically and being estranged by their own families (Rew, Whittaker, Taylor‐Seehafer Smith, 2005). This paper covers the issue of homelessness among transgender in the realms of the different ages, the psychological effects, and the reasons why they are

The assigned readings for this course have been extremely beneficial in helping me formed a foundation of understanding towards the Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transgender community. Because of these readings I have increased my understanding of the many obstacles that individuals in this community must overcome; specifically the youth. LGBT individuals are often faced with a unique set of problems that clinical social workers should be aware of. Most times, this group of sexual minorities feels that they are being discriminated against by their friends, family, and the society as a whole (Bennett, 2013, p. 1). Unfortunately this feeling and thinking of alienation and discrimination subjects them to stress, anxiety and depression. All of which

The social issue that I chose which affects society today is transgender inequality. These issues are more recently gaining attention and becoming a prevalent topic of inequality within our country. A transgender person is someone whose gender identity, gender expression or behavior does not conform to that typically associated with the sex to which they were assigned at birth. As more and more transgender people share their stories in the media, the social problems that arise from these stories are discrimination within their everyday lives. They suffer from scrutiny and judgment from their peers, and thus many hide their gender identity from family and society. This social injustice can be as simple as a glance or staring, or offensive comments and questions to violent hate crimes. Transgender people are prone to violence and harassment, and often not feeling safe in any aspect of society. They are fired from jobs, denied medical insurance, and being murdered left and right solely for being transgender. “A staggering 41% of respondents reported attempting suicide compared to 1.6% of the general population, with rates rising for those who lost a job due to bias (55%), were harassed/bullied in school (51%), had low household income, or were the victim of physical assault (61%) or sexual assault (64%)” (National Center for Transgender Equality). The structure of this paper will consist of adding all the research that was gathered over the semester, news articles and peer