Where’s the T in LGBT
The ‘gay rights movement’ is a sham.
There are countless issues with the gay rights movement, one of the largest being that trans individuals are being left without a voice. At ETHS there is a growing population of trans individuals who struggle to even be able to gain access to bathrooms or locker rooms that they are comfortable in, or actually hear something in a health class that has something that relates to them.
Gay marriage isn’t enough. While an important goal for many, gay marriage had become the only goal of the gay rights movement, and completely blindsided many other issues and needs. Even the name ‘gay rights movement’ makes it obvious that people are being left out.
As the movement has continued to make headway, it has become apparent that the “T” in LGBT is being neglected as gay men and women continue to take precedence, blindsiding transgender individuals.
Trans individuals are rarely recognized as a unique group that requires its own specific set of demonstrations to obtain equality. Instead, they are often considered an obscure subgroup of the gay community.
In the beginning of the gay rights movement, the battle against violence, outright discrimination and blatant intolerance was one that gays, bisexuals and transgender men and women could all sympathize with. Now, the concerns of gay men and lesbians have shifted as their agenda has received more media attention. Although transgender men and women also share some of the hardships, they are subjected to many more injustices that fail to gain hardly any mainstream support
The issues of transgender men and women are often brushed to the side as the stereotype of an overly sensitive group of people. People often justify their intolerance of the trans community while expressing support for same-sex rights.
Overall, society has become very tolerant of same-sex orientation. The majority of Americans now support the civil rights of gay men and women, giving the fight for equality a chance to make some real differences in the world. Now is the time for us to throw our strength behind our peers and a group who continues to be marginalized just as the rest of the gay community was not too long ago. Now, more than ever, it’s time for the LGB to start upholding the “T.”
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A non-mouse • Oct 18, 2015 at 8:57 pm
ETHS health classes do a good job, and if you’re worried about the curriculum instead of writing a provocative article filled with baseless claims and no evidence you could talk to someone about adding some material to the course. Good topic, important points, but it needs some evidence before people will take you seriously.
Anonymous • Oct 14, 2015 at 5:18 pm
I appreciate the effort, but this opinion piece, like most other Evanstonian opinions pieces in general, are mostly childish without any evidence/support or solutions to problems. The opinions are very watered down and seems like they are intentionally trying to steer away from any debate or controversy. Most of them are telling people what they already know such as , “recycling is good!” , “include all types of people!”, “ETHS students should be more involved!”, etc. The entire point of an opinion piece is to inspire debate, and I have yet to see a single Evanstonian opinion piece which succeeds in doing this. Try to get the writers to share their opinions on more meaningful subjects, which are actually ones that ETHS students are split on.
Don’t get me wrong– I am not trying to insult anyone here, especially not Gabby Smith, who is obviously a very talented writer. I love the Evanstonian, but opinion has always been a weak spot in my view. Please try to fix this.
Anonymous • Aug 28, 2015 at 2:07 pm
Interesting topic, but I don’t see what authority the writer has on the subject, assuming that she herself is not a trans individual. Poorly written and biased in my opinion.