The Obama administration plans to allow transgender students in public schools their right to use the bathrooms that match their gender identity. Public schools that do not follow this law could be subjected to lawsuit or losing their federal aid as a consequence. The law stems from concerns over the bullying and vulnerability that students face in public schools, and strives to achieve equality and fairness.
It is no secret that many Americans are using social media in an effort to voice their opinion on the new law. According to a poll by Rasmussen Reports, reportedly 51 percent of American adults do not support the transgender fairness law and a reportedly 33 percent do. Major concerns with those who oppose the law include the safety of themselves and their families, fearful that a transgender law will bring an influx of sexual harassment and abuse.
Gov. Pat McCrory of North Carolina passed a bill last March (HB2) that requires people to use the bathroom that corresponds directly with their assigned gender at birth and the gender demonstrated on their birth certificate. The bill’s passing brought an uproar response, with many claiming that there is no realistic way such a bill could ever be enforced. Others are concerned that the bill violates the state federal anti-discrimination laws.
Singer Elton John recently took to the Hill to write about the “ignorance” of North Carolina to pass a bill that takes away the rights of transgender students, calling it “traumatic” and “unsafe” to force young transitioning people to use the incorrect bathroom. “They need to recognize the existence of trans people, and they need to acknowledge that all people have a fundamental desire — and a fundamental right — to be treated fairly,” John wrote.
Other celebrities like Bruce Springsteen took to Facebook to voice their support back in April, cancelling a show in North Carolina to protest the passing of the HB2. “As a result, and with deepest apologies to our dedicated fans in Greensboro,” Springsteen wrote, “we have canceled our show scheduled for Sunday, April 10th.”
Additionally, Republican front-runner Donald Trump agreed that the North Carolina law discriminating against the transgender community should not be in place. His concerns that creating more gender-neutral bathrooms would be too expensive, and the state should have left things the way that they were. “People go, they use the bathroom that they feel is appropriate. There has been so little trouble,” Trump commented.
