www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-beds-bucks-herts-43462823
Interesting on a number of levels, I think. The school had originally said a transgender child (a boy identifying as a girl) couldn't use the girls' toilets 'out of respect' - presumably for the girls.
An organisation called Transpire then got involved. Their spokesperson is quoted as saying "I find it quite amazing some schools are branding it respect when in fact it is segregation ... It's about giving people the opportunity to use the toilet they are comfortable with, not what the school is comfortable with."
The school capitulated, with the head saying "because of what the school stands for and the rights written into equality law, the school made the decision to allow transgender students to use a toilet that matches their identified gender".
This begs so many questions, doesn't it? Why is 'respect' being posited as the opposite of 'segregation'? Surely segregation by sex is partly about respecting the needs of people, particularly women, to single-sex spaces? Why does the comfort of one child trump the comfort of many children? And why is equality law being used to justify this, when we know it says no such thing?
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Feminism: Sex & gender discussions
Interesting school toilets story
129 replies
FlorenceLyons · 20/03/2018 10:42
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DancesWithOtters ·
20/03/2018 11:13
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