For the first time in their lives, transgender students at Alberni District Secondary School will be able to use whatever washroom they need to, without having to ask for a key or stand in a lineup.
On Oct. 22, B次元官网网址淭rans WelcomeB次元官网网址� signs went up on all the washrooms in the high school, making it clear that transgender students are welcome in washrooms and changerooms that match their gender identity.
B次元官网网址淲hen I first found out about the bathrooms, it was an immediate sense of B次元官网网址業 can finally be who I am,B次元官网网址橞次元官网网址� said one trans student the Alberni Valley B次元官网网址 interviewed.
B次元官网网址淚 remember the excitement and the euphoria when it was announced,B次元官网网址� teacher Anne Ostwald said.
B次元官网网址淚 cried,B次元官网网址� another student said.
Another student also remembers the fear when the signs were ripped down.
School District 70B次元官网网址檚 decision to put up the signs has prompted a tsunami of comment on Port Alberni social media sites, as people passionately debated the new policy. While the atmosphere in the school has been fairly muted, trans students say that adults outside of the school have blown the issue way out of proportion.
B次元官网网址淚tB次元官网网址檚 just sad,B次元官网网址� they said.
There are about a dozen transgender or gender-variant students who attend ADSS.
B次元官网网址淭hen there are those who havenB次元官网网址檛 come out or who havenB次元官网网址檛 figured it out,B次元官网网址� they said.
They just want to be able to go to the washroom in the facility that matches their gender identity.
B次元官网网址淭here are transgender youth at ADSS,B次元官网网址� says Greg Smyth, superintendent of schools in School District 70. B次元官网网址淭hey have largely been a marginalized group in schools and society. We donB次元官网网址檛 think thereB次元官网网址檚 going to be a sudden (rush) of B次元官网网址業B次元官网网址檓 going to exercise my right and IB次元官网网址檓 going to use the washroom.B次元官网网址� But if they choose to, they have the right.B次元官网网址�
The decision to put up the signs and open the washrooms is based on a 2016 Canadian Human Rights Code decision that sexual orientation is considered a right. The school district is actually behind in making this change, Smyth said.
The school district has drafted a policy on diversity and inclusion that has been prompted, in part, by Sexual Orientation and Gender Identity (SOGI), which school districts in British Columbia are supportingB次元官网网址攊ncluding SD70.
B次元官网网址淭his is not about putting a sign on the wall,B次元官网网址� he said. B次元官网网址淎cceptance is much, much more than that. And itB次元官网网址檚 not limited to accepting transgender youth, itB次元官网网址檚 anybody who is different. This is just one more step down that path.B次元官网网址�
Smyth said there is a prevailing attitude in the community that B次元官网网址渂y addressing individual rights youB次元官网网址檝e taken away the rights of others. ItB次元官网网址檚 not true. Females who identify with their gender at birth can still use the female washroom. Same for guys. Their right has not been removed.
B次元官网网址淲e have just acknowledged that there is an equal right to use it.B次元官网网址�
Gender identity B次元官网网址渋s not purely biologicalB次元官网网址�, he said. B次元官网网址淲eB次元官网网址檝e broadened the definition of male and female to include gender identity. We know there is a percentage of our population which still holds onto the thought that gender is based on biology.
B次元官网网址淎s a school district, we canB次元官网网址檛 continue with that singular definition of what is male and what is female. To act as if there is a single definition of male and female, is deemed to be discriminatory.B次元官网网址�
For trans students, the need is much more simple: they need a place where they can go to the toilet and do it safely. Because they havenB次元官网网址檛 been goingB次元官网网址攁t all.
B次元官网网址淚 just avoid going,B次元官网网址� they said.
B次元官网网址淵ou wait until you go home. Which for many of us is more than six hours. I leave the house at 7:20 a.m. and donB次元官网网址檛 get home until 4:20. I wouldnB次元官网网址檛 use the bathroom.B次元官网网址�
B次元官网网址淚B次元官网网址檓 not girl enough to go in the girlsB次元官网网址� bathroom (without being ostracized) and not boy enough to go in the boysB次元官网网址� bathroom,B次元官网网址� said another.
The high school has given access to three gender-neutral washrooms for about a year: one in the sick room, one in the staff room and the third in the family washroom on the lower floor. The problem with these washrooms, said one student, was that if the sick room was occupied by another student, that facility was off limits; the one on the lower floor is popular with students skipping classes, and there is often a lineup. The gender-neutral washrooms were available for everyoneB次元官网网址檚 use.
B次元官网网址淭here were teachers that said trans (students) couldnB次元官网网址檛 use the bathroom during their class because it took too long,B次元官网网址� one said.
An inclusive school environment is about more than changing washroom signage, Smyth wrote in his letter to parents. B次元官网网址淚tB次元官网网址檚 about understanding, appreciating and accepting the diversity of our school communities; itB次元官网网址檚 about creating safe, welcoming and supportive schoolsB次元官网网址次元官网网址�
Despite the new signs going up, not all trans students have used the washroom that matches their gender identity. Two admitted that they hadB次元官网网址攂ut that they hid until they were certain the washrooms were empty before entering.
Smyth is quick to silence critics who say the new rules and signs will only encourage people to take advantageB次元官网网址攂oys declaring they are transgender so they can gain access to the girlsB次元官网网址� washroom, for example.
B次元官网网址淢r. Souther (principal Rob) was really clear to studentsB次元官网网址his isnB次元官网网址檛 licence to say tomorrow IB次元官网网址檓 going to be a girl so I can go into the girlsB次元官网网址� washroom,B次元官网网址� Smyth said. B次元官网网址淧eople will be addressed in an appropriate wayB次元官网网址� if they do.
Trans students at ADSS agree that the B次元官网网址渢rans welcomeB次元官网网址� signs are a good step toward acceptance. The school also supported Pride Day at ADSS for the first time last year, which was also considered a victory.
B次元官网网址淭heyB次元官网网址檝e all been tiny, incremental steps, and theyB次元官网网址檝e been building up nicely,B次元官网网址� said Ostwald, who helps students find their voices through her Social Justice and Social Studies classes.
The next step, they hope, will be B次元官网网址渦nderstanding and empathy. And maybe people not attacking us.B次元官网网址�
Students were interviewed for this story with a teacher present and granted anonymity so they donB次元官网网址檛 become further targets in the community.
