Transgender Discrimination In America

Brooke Forgetta
Professor Ghilaine McDayter
November 20,2010

Discrimination of Transgeders within America

“Every single day, lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender people get fired from their jobs simply because of who they are. When employers discriminate, we all lose because hardworking, qualified Americans are out of a job. We need everyone to tell Congress clearly why ENDA needs to pass and pass quickly. The march is a great opportunity for people to get resources and skills to make this happen. Jobs, families, and even lives, are depending on this,” said Mara Keisling. Keisling is the executive director of the National Center for Transgender Equality and was speaking about the Employment-Non Discrimination Act. The act will hopefully
“In desperate search for affirmation, they often place themselves in risky environments such as public venues where adults congregate seeking sexual contacts.” (Biegel, p 193). Transgender children are put at such a higher risk than adult transsexuals due to the fact that they are so vulnerable and feel so much more displaced in the world. As if feeling like they don’t fit in the world isn’t enough transgender children are often out casted by their families. Parents often find a way to punish their child for what they believe is a decision they are making, not the person who they really are. It is often that they are labeled the problem in the family and “Families may begin to project their anxieties about other family conflicts on the transgender child as a way of avoiding confronting the real issues. Some transgender children and youth are shipped away to behavioral camps, psychiatric hospitals or residential treatment facilities, where rigidly enforced gender conformity further represses their needs and does more harm than good.” (Mallon, p.9) Sending a child to camp where they are surrounded by kids just like them can only make them better realize they are different from everyone else and somewhat backfires on most parents’ plan to make their child fit within social norms. There is no way to alter a person’s true
Many youth believe that something is wrong with them and that they cannot possibly let down their family because they believe that being different will not be accepted by their parents. “How open to be with the family about their transgender identity is a major issue for transgender youth.” (Morrow, pg.1) “Those who come out to their families hope for support and validation, yet they are at risk for disapproval, maltreatment, and disownment.” (Teague, 1992) No child wants to be mistreated by their families because your home is supposed to be a place of acceptance as well as a sanctuary. It is often that children feel as if their families will disown them. Kids then find a need to hide their identity and portray the correct gender society has labeled them. Furthermore, It is harder for youth who are very close with their families to come out. “Thus transgender youth who are more strongly identified with their families may be more likely to try to meet the heterocentric and traditional gender role expectations of their families,” (Morrow, pg. 2). Therefore the closer the family, more of a distance grows between the family and the child’s true identity. As a result, most transgender children hide their true identity from their families probably because “In a study of more than 100 gay, lesbian, and transgender youth who had disclosed to their parents, only half of the mothers and siblings were