#transgenderdiscrimination

Sources

Burns, Crosby, and Jeff Krehely. "Gay and Transgender People Face High Rates of Workplace Discrimination and Harassment." Center for American Progress. 2 June 2011.

https://www.americanprogress.org/issues/lgbt/news/2011/06/02/9872/gay-and-transgender-people-face-high-rates-of-workplace-discrimination-and-harassment/

This cite was very useful in learning about statistics about discrimination and also put the scale of the magnitude of this form of discrimination into perspective.

 Burns, Crosby, and Jeff Krehely. "Gay and Transgender People Face High Rates of Workplace Discrimination and Harassment." Center for American Progress. 2 June 2011.

https://www.researchgate.net/profile/Michelle_Dietert/publication/228462098_Gender_Identity_Issues_and_Workplace_Discrimination_The_Transgender_Experience/links/5523ffa80cf2caf11bfc6fcc.pdf

I used this source to get an idea of the specific kinds of discrimination some trans people face in the workplace after transitioning, as well has to get a bit more of a personal detail of what individuals go through.

 Koch, Katie, and Richard Bales. "TRANSGENDER EMPLOYMENT DISCRIMINATION." UCLA WOMEN'S LAW JOURNAL 17 (2008): 243-67.

http://poseidon01.ssrn.com/delivery.php?ID=434125086106006085070012065031123120049012071021089062106127078028100089092000088066018100023057000108035092116112118114113127000072044080010071072086118006090125005058075106005121124115004122102095116026088081071085121096105091066090126112097104110&EXT=pdf

This source was very useful in understanding the legal aspect of trans discrimination and also helped me to understand how the problem could potentially be solved.

 Muhr, Sarah Louise, Katie Rose Sullivan, and Craig Rich. "Situated Transgressiveness: Exploring One Transwoman's Lived Experience Across Three Situated Contexts." Gender, Work, & Organization 23 (2016). Online Library.

http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/gwao.12093/epdf

This source what I primarily used for my real example and the details of Claire’s life and day to day minor struggles helped me realize discrimination is also about the minor things.

 Ford, Zack. "Texas School Removes Transgender Teacher From Classroom After Parents Complain." Think Progress. 29 Apr. 2014.

http://thinkprogress.org/lgbt/2014/04/29/3432042/texas-transgender-teacher-klug/

This source gave me an idea as to how institutionalized and internalized transphobia can be in society, particularly when it comes to schools.

 Wong, Alia. "The K-12 Binary." The Atlantic. 9 July 2015.

http://www.theatlantic.com/education/archive/2015/07/the-k-12-binary/398060/

I used this source to get an idea for the institutional example as well as to include some misconceptions some people have about trans persons in schools.

Additional Resources

http://www.transequality.org/know-your-rights/employment-general

Useful in learning one’s workplace rights.

http://transgenderlawcenter.org/issues/employment

Has many resources and informtional videos and examples.

http://www.hrc.org/resources/coming-out-in-the-workplace-as-transgender

This website is useful in that is has steps towards easing workplace transition and tips for avoiding issues

http://www.forbes.com/sites/karenhigginbottom/2014/06/24/how-to-support-transgender-employees-in-the-workplace/#61b4128458b1

This resource is useful for learning how to support trans people in their workplace.

http://www.natlawreview.com/article/transgender-issues-workplace

There a number of possible solutions that I have thought about for this problem since starting my research. Though they are somewhat limited and may not have much of an effect immediately or if people work alone, together and over time they should help to shift gears toward solving this problem. The first possible solution I have identified is to get the Supreme Court and national government to require all state governments to protect transgender persons from discrimination. The Supreme Court ruled that transgender persons are protected under title VII, a nation-wide law, yet many states still do not have any form of protection for trans persons. To do this it is important for the national government to know that a large portion of the population demands that these institutions be held responsible for upholding the national law.

Another solution I have identified may seem like an obvious one. In order to make sure trans people are granted the protection they deserve it is important to elect officials who will make sure they will be protected. Researching a candidate’s history of official matters involving transgender persons or other lgbtq person would be a good way to know whether or not they can be trusted with this issue. In order to change the policy and laws regarding the discrimination of transgender individuals, the people in official positions must also be changed.

This problem is a fairly significant one as demonstrated by the vast majority of trans individuals in the workplace as demonstrated by previously showed statistics. This is a problem that, although is more common and concentrated in certain areas, is found throughout the country. Even though the nation has laws against discrimination of trans individuals there are still places in this country where being discriminated for being transgender is completely legal. The extensiveness of this issue is it reaches across the country, into organizations both big and small, at numerous levels and yet little to nothing seems to be happening about it.

This problem is an intersectional problem regarding class and education level. In terms of class, people of lower classes have less access to health care and options than others due to cost. This relates to transgender discrimination because if a personal of lower class is transgender, they have less access to materials and resources to undergo transition or if they do they are likely not as effective as others. This brings up the problem of “passing” which is very important for many trans people. With having a harder time passing, they may experience more discrimination in their place of business. Also, since lower class people tend to work in smaller businesses or hold lower positions, they are viewed as less important to the company and can be fired to be easily replaced and the trans person may not have the means to bring up an official case. Trans people of lower classes can become easier targets for discrimination making this an intersectional issue.

It was not a good day. I live in one of FIVE damn states where supposedly Trans Rights EXIST in some form. Supposedly the Feebs are all about protecting and enabling HUMAN RIGHTS and making our lives better, yet I am trying to enable my life and become who I am so I can get OFF disability, become a functional person, maybe not be crushed by depression and all the horrible things that go along with being in the wrong form. 

I had dotted every damn i crossed every damn T, I had the letters, I live as a man, I have been on T the requisite amount of time, the physicians all agreed it was the right time, my doctors agreed it was the right time. 

I am FORTY-FOUR YEARS OLD. I have had CHRONIC BACK AND SHOULDER ISSUES AS WELL. We submitted the request in the proper way to OREGON HEALTHNET VIOLET OPTION D along with all the proper paper work, and I followed the claim on my website, checking in almost daily to see if they needed more information, and they never requested anything. The website never updated from,"Pending".'

Today was the 14 day deadline. Tomorrow is my pre-surgical appointment with the team. I called to find out what was the decision and I was told by "Jorge" that they had denied the procedure as,"Not an authorized procedure" . 

I reminded them I live in Oregon, that they were discriminating and that it was not simply cosmetic that I intended to appeal. I was advised to contact the physicians office and get the information I needed to do so. 

I faxed the appeal at 2 pm with a request for information on their legal counsels contact information, as of yet I have heard nothing back.