The Chancellor’s Diversity Initiative held its final You in Mizzou discussion of the academic year Wednesday. The discussion was titled “Transgender: Navigating the Gray Zone of Gender Identity.”
Speaker Emily Colvin opened the discussion with a presentation on the main issues the transgender community faces and what it means to be transgender in the United States and at MU. She spoke about the difference between sex and gender: sex as the physical aspect and gender as how a person identifies. She also talked about harassment and abuse, discriminations that transgender individuals face and the expense of medical transitions.
“I didn’t know that suicide rates were so high, and I didn’t know that the unemployment was so high,” freshman Kim White said.
Colvin also pointed out that things still aren’t perfect at MU and said she wished the university would recognize transgender individuals’ preferred names and identities but thinks discussions such as this are a step forward.
“I would like to see gender identity be officially included in the university,” Colvin said. “But I find it amazing that the Chancellor’s Diversity Initiative did this, and we love that they did it.”
Another issue for the transgender community is the lack of gender-neutral bathrooms. Colvin said many transgender people are harassed in public bathrooms, or suffer from urinary tract infections because they have to wait to go to the bathroom in a safe place, which is often hard to find.
“We should start with bathrooms and move from there,” facilitator Ty Gephardt said.
Gephardt said the monthly You in Mizzou discussions were established as a safe place for people to have discussions and share their ideas without any accusations or social pressures. He said it is also to allow people to experience different viewpoints.
“It gives people more of an awareness about it and hopefully it will help them better understand what’s going on so they will be more receptive and hopefully more open,” Gephardt said.
Facilitator Jennifer Smith said she hoped participants could learn something they didn’t know and open their eyes by participating in the discussion. She also said spreading awareness about the transgender community was important.
“Transgender, as far as folks in the LGBTQ community, are some of the more invisible in society, besides bisexual people, so I think it’s important to create a visibility for them,” Smith said.
The discussion raised larger issues about how it is hard for people to accept anyone that is different in some way.
“We don’t allow people to be people,” Gephardt said. “We can’t label people or put them in boxes.”
The LGBTQ Resource Center and the Counseling Center provide support for people questioning their identity, and more information can be found on their websites.
“It’s nothing that’s going to hurt you, and we’re not trying to recruit kids,” Colvin said. “Trans-women aren’t sitting in women’s bathrooms trying to rape women. It’s how we want to live our lives. We’re not freaks, we’re humans. Please respect us.”
