Public Policy in a (Trans)gendered Society

NatalieRose Brogan
Wheaton College

Public Policy in a (Trans)gendered Society

This semester has been an eye-opening one for me as we have held ongoing discussions
on the issue of human rights. It is not news that our society is gendered, but it was not until this
year that I actually understood the breadth and gravity of oppression in our society.
Author of Black Feminist Thought, Patricia Hill Collins challenges one to expand
the focus from simply comparing and contrasting systems of race, class and gender, to placing
greater attention on the interconnectedness of these systems. Collins (2000:224) speaks about the
matrix of domination, which essentially says that whenever you have an either/or scenario,
oppression is likely to exist. Privilege becomes defined in relation to its other, she explains. In
Collins case, these thoughts are mainly attributed to black women, but this is also a reality of all
minority groups: Muslims, lower-class white women, Jews, lesbians, gays, transgenders etc. The
matrix of domination suggests that there is always a group in subordination.
Human ties can be our greatest sense of joy as we benefit from life-giving relationships.
But for some, they are the complete opposite. Human ties may be the root of what controls them,
defines them and oppresses them. The matrix of domination is just that: it dominates. Collins
offers hope to those who fall in this category, Empowerment involves rejecting the dimensions
of knowledge, whether personal, cultural, or institutional, that perpetuate objectification and
dehumanization. . . Other individuals in subordinate groups become empowered when we
understand and use those dimensions of our individual, group, and disciplinary ways of knowing
that foster our humanity as fully human subjects (2000:226).
One avenue to address this human injustice is through public policy. Defining public
policy is often a more difficult task than it seems. While it refers to the laws and the actions of
the government, it also aids in the regulations that reflect given attitudes, cultural ideals or
accepted rules. Lawmakers may rule something a certain way because of public policy, but they

are simultaneously shaping it as well. While the definition may be somewhat elusive, public
policy issues are becoming rampant in the United States. Just when the government seems to
have its stake in every societal problem, a new matter arises.
In recent years, the transgender movement has taken root, especially among adolescent
Americans. The rise of transgender students in public high schools has created new questions and
the demand for new public policy. The increasing dilemma concerns the proper accommodations
of transgender students use of locker rooms in public schools. Controversies are rising in
schools across the nation in response to transgender students loud demand for unrestricted
access to locker rooms.
Placing transgender students under the category of public policy issues does not sit
well with most people. However, the demand from transgender public school students for
unrestricted access to locker rooms has created tension that may be dealt with through public
policy. Transgender students are demanding the right for equal treatment. They insist on being
viewed and treated as the gender with which they identify. This demand for equal treatment has
been given in many cases by using each students preferred name and pronouns and by granting
the person to play on the sports team of the gender with which he or she identifies. Now, it is
becoming more popular for public school bathroom facilities to be open to students use of their
preferred gender restroom (Miller, 2015).
The most significant transgender controversy is the matter of trans students (students who
are biologically a different sex from the gender with which they identify) changing in public
school locker rooms. These students have the reproduction system and organs of their naturalborn sex; however, they identify with the opposite gender, and because of that, they expect to
change their clothes alongside the members of that particular gender. That demand for equal

treatment lies in tension with the right to privacy. In the United States, the right to privacy is a
long-standing right. A lot of people believe that their privacy, or their childrens privacy, would
be violated with the exposure to the opposite sex in the locker room. In the case of a biologically
male transgender teen at a high school in Palatine, Illinois, he has filed suit to change in the girls
locker room. Mostly all of the community members who have spoken on this issue have
expressed discomfort with the potential access to the locker room (Miller, 2015).
There was a similar situation at a high school in Missouri where over one hundred
students walked out of class in protest of a transgender students request to have full access to the
locker room (Workman, 2015). Students and parents alike feel uncomfortable at the possibility of
transgender students changing alongside the opposite sex. Exposing the naked body to members
of the opposite sex, especially in the case of young students, has been categorized as a violation
of the right to privacy. (Poirier, 2015) Theses parents thoughts and opinions should be heard and
considered by the school. Meanwhile, the school must also consider the voice of the seemingly
subordinate LGBT families. A school that takes a proactive stance in preventing harassment and
intervening when discrimination occurs is perceived as a welcoming and supportive environment
for LGBT families. Schools should provide mandatory training for teachers, counselors,
librarians, nurses, and Title IX coordinators about sexual orientation, gender identification, and
anti-LGBT bullying interventions (Michaelson, 2008). More concretely, parents of transgender
students want to be reassured by hearing examples of how incidents were handled. Gender
inclusive language also needs to be implemented. Terms such as parents are far too limiting.
More appropriate terms that should be used are families or guardian (Jeltova and Marian,
2005).

This issue of competing rights cannot be overlooked, and the voice of the Christian
community should be shared. Gender is a foundational aspect of creation (Grandy, 2015). As
Genesis 1:27 states, So God created mankind in his own image, in the image of God he created
them; male and female he created them. Distortion of gender and gender confusion is a result of
sin, confusing our hearts and minds (Ephesians 4:18). Knowing that transgender lifestyles are a
warped version of Gods image and creation of gender, Christians must not encourage or support
the movement. However, alongside this knowledge is the ever-present call to love all people in
the way that Jesus has loved. As Christians approach this issue of protecting the right to privacy
and discouraging the embracement of the transgender lifestyle, may the goodness and love of the
Father guide their actions and be filled with love and grace.
In another light, Christians must acknowledge the separation of Church and state in a
country that so proudly advertises the fundamental right to freedom of religion. They must not
expect others to hold the same religious beliefs in regards to the transgender movement. That
being said, the matter at hand is a matter beyond religious or personal views of a transgender
lifestyle. The issue of trans students having full access to locker rooms lies in the clash of
identity and anatomy, facts rather than faith. Christians should be involved in this issue,
motivated by their desire to protect the right to privacy and discourage the distortion of gender;
however, to be productive, they need to rely on the facts rather than through religious views.
The issue exists because these two demands of rights cannot be simultaneously satisfied.
Either the transgendered students will feel ostracized by changing apart from the gender with
which they identify, or the majority of the other students will feel uncomfortable being exposed
to bodies of the opposite sex. The right to equal treatment and the right to privacy will not fit
hand in hand in this subject matter (Workman, 2015).

Although a fully welcomed solution is impossible, public policy must be formed to

address the competing rights. Congress and state legislators should rise up in response to this
issue so that schools are not bullied into the agenda of federal regulators, such as the Office of
Civil Rights (Malkus, 2015). After looking at current school cases dealing with transgender
students demand for full access to locker rooms, several possible proposals exist. The most
relevant case, as mentioned earlier, is taking place nearby Palatine, Illinois. The case evolved
upon a transgender studenta biologically male teenager who identifies as femaledemanding
unrestricted access to the girls locker room. The Office of Civil Rights (OCR) ruled that she was
being discriminated against her right to equal treatment (Miller, 2015).
Six million dollars of federal school funding rested on the solution District 211 would
decide upon. The school was faced with extremely vocal opinions on both sides of the matter
from students, parents, and the government, as everyone had something to gain or loose from the
outcome of the case. Palatine-Schaumburg High School District 211 knew the precedent their
decision would set. Their proposed policy is the most agreeable and conclusive solution in the
issue of trans students access to locker rooms to date.
The public policy that will be set in Palatine is semi-restricted access of transgender
students to public school locker rooms. This policy, although currently only applicable to
District 211, should be imitated and adopted in schools across the country with similar debates.
The implementation of semi-restricted access will be through the installation of private changing
stations within locker rooms as the only space for trans students to use. Transgender students will
be given access to these stations in an effort to respect their rights to identify with their chosen
gender while honoring all students basic right to privacy through keeping anatomically different
sexes apart while changing and showering. Discrimination is not the intention of the separate

changing and showering stations, but the right to privacy must be maintained, especially in
regards to minors exposure to nudity. Fundamental liberties, including the right to privacy, are
guaranteed under the Constitution. This needs to be remembered when fundamental liberties are
being threatened by recent movements, such as the transgender movement.
Although it may leave both parties somewhat frustrated, this policy of semi-restricted
access to trans students in public school locker rooms is a realistic, tangible, and law-abiding
compromise. It acknowledges the right to equal treatment while emphasizing the basic right to
privacy with respect to the vulnerable environment of a locker room. This policy settlement now
exists as an informal nonobligatory precedent for all public schools facing the same questions.
It will be argued that this is not a satisfactory solution. With all public policy proposals,
downfalls exist. First, it must be acknowledged that transgender students will continue to feel set
apart and ostracized from the gender with which they identify as they are continually treated
differently. The distinct treatment of transgender students is often touted as a violation of Title IX
(US Department of Justice). This federal law is a law to prevent discrimination based on sex
within programs and education that receives federal funding. Although transgender students are
not specifically mentioned under Title IX, it has recently been issued by the Office of Civil
Rights that transgender people are protected under that law (Jeltova and Marian, 2005). It is
nearly guaranteed that the transgender movement will continue to push until there is no
differentiation in treatment in all circumstances.
On the flip side of the matter, this proposal will make students and parents feel their basic
right to privacy is being infringed upon by the presence of changing stations for transgender
students in the locker rooms. Many view this settlement as a slippery slope to eventual non-

restricted access to public school locker rooms for all students. This is a reasonable concern as
the transgender movement continues to grow.
Upon hearing this proposal, neither party and feels successful. However, this country
continues to exist and thrive as a result of compromise. Societal satisfaction is not the end goal of
public policy, and this matter of transgender students access to locker rooms is no exception.
Instead, this proposal should be implemented as a realistic policy that would ensure the right to
privacy, but mainly it would contribute significantly to greater gender equality.

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