Ashton Skinner

AZ I See It

Last month, a “My Turn” column was featured titled: "This isn’t just about bathrooms." The writer argued that the rights of transgender people have been placed above those of everyone else.

But the fact of the matter is that the rights of transgender people are still below those of everyone else. In Arizona and 32 other states, non-discrimination laws don’t apply to transgender people. People like me. This means that it is perfectly legal to fire us, deny us housing or refuse us service simply for being who we are.

Transgender people don’t want special rights — we want equal rights. And that includes using the bathroom and changing in the locker room of the gender we identify with and live as daily.

Why transgender safety matters

As a transgender man, I can guarantee I would be putting myself at risk if I were to use a women’s restroom or head to the women’s locker room at the gym. And I can guarantee it would cause more of a stir if I were to use the women’s bathroom or locker room at my gym than if I used the men’s.

The argument that some would “pretend” to be transgender for a day is a red herring used to disguise bigotry. The reality is that the violence occurring in bathrooms and locker rooms is happening to transgender people, not because of them.

ALLHANDS:How are bathroom bills not about homophobia?

Caring about safety in restrooms and locker rooms isn’t just a value of cisgender (that is, not transgender) and heterosexual people. We all care about safety, which is why it’s important to know that it is already illegal for anyone to go to a bathroom or locker room to harm or harass someone, or invade their privacy.

More than 200 cities and 18 states already have laws protecting transgender people from discrimination — including in restrooms — and none of these cities or states have seen an increase in public-safety incidents. In fact, more than 300 of the nation’s leading sexual-assault and domestic-violence prevention organizations recently issued a landmark statement refuting false claims that protecting transgender people from discrimination compromises privacy or safety.

When transgender people like me are protected from life-threatening danger, it is not at the price of anyone else’s safety.

What federal policy asks schools to do

Leading child-welfare groups from the American Academy of Pediatrics to the National Association of Secondary School Principals have condemned efforts to restrict transgender students' access to facilities and have called for equal treatment of transgender students in classrooms.

The administration’s guidance -- standard-issue guidance that the departments of Education and Justice routinely provide on issues under federal law -- simply seeks to ensure that transgender students can learn and succeed in school without fear of bullying, harassment or isolation. Research shows that transgender students experience especially high rates of bullying and harassment in schools.

MORE:Arizona sues over bathroom directives

Nearly nine in 10 transgender students have been verbally harassed at school due to their gender expression (87 percent), and more than half have also been physically assaulted (53 percent). In addition, transgender children grow up to have a 41 percent chance of attempting suicide and a one in 12 chance of being murdered in a hate crime. When we talk about protecting our nation’s innocent kids, we need to recognize the most vulnerable among them.

A priority for schools is to make sure every student feels valued and respected, and that includes transgender students. The reality is, schools across the country have successfully worked with both transgender and cisgender students to come up with solutions that balance everyone’s needs and concerns.

Every student needs to feel safe

Every student should have a fair chance to succeed in school. But many transgender students face hostility, discrimination and bullying. Policies like the one announced by the Department of Education help ensure that transgender students have the opportunity to fully participate and succeed in school so they can graduate with their classmates and contribute to society.

I know such policies would have made it much easier for me to succeed and be my authentic self when I was in school. But most importantly, these policies could literally save the lives of the youngest members of my community, without causing harm to their peers.

Ashton Skinner is a 23-year-old transgender man, a graduate student at Arizona State University and the transgender and Millennial organizer at ONE Community. Email him at ashton@onecommunity.co.