Transgender Bias Gets Personal

One can legally be fired or denied housing simply for being transgender in 33 states, including Wisconsin. Milwaukee County fixed this problem on April 24, when the County Board voted 12-6 to expand its non-discrimination ordinance to include gender identity. The ordinance passed despite Julaine Appling’s attempt to rally opposition. Appling is president of Wisconsin Family Action, an advocacy group for far-right, conservative issues.

Appling portrayed the ordinance as a “bathroom bill” in order to generate fear. She tried to convince the public that the ordinance opened a loophole for pedophiles and sexual predators to cross-dress in order to enter women’s bathrooms. However, similar protections have been established in 17 states and dozens of cities nation-wide without an instance of being used to commit a sexual assault.

Appling also claimed gender identity is constantly changing in order to discredit the need for the ordinance.

“One day, a boy wakes up and says, ‘I feel like I’m a girl today,’” Appling said. “But what happens when two weeks or two months later the boy wakes up and says, ‘I feel like a boy today’ and proceeds to dress and act like a boy?”

This statement is very misleading. Gender dysphoria, the term used to describe the internal conflict when mental gender does not match physical sex, is a lifelong struggle according to the American Psychological Association. To even gain status as the gender they identify with, transgender people must see a therapist for months in order to receive a letter endorsing their gender dysphoria. I can also say from personal experience that gender dysphoria experienced as a child does not go away over time, despite any effort to diminish it.

Contrary to Appling’s campaign, gaining access to facilities that match gender identity is not the most important aspect of this ordinance. Transgender people regularly experience the worst society has to offer. They face higher rates of unemployment, homelessness and harassment than the rest of the population. According to the American Society of Suicide Prevention, 41% of transgender people have attempted suicide. This ordinance is a step towards eliminating the roots of that statistic by ensuring fair access to employment and housing.

I now count myself among Milwaukee’s transgender population after more than 20 years of hiding in fear. I grew up hating my feelings of gender dysphoria; I was afraid that a single person discovering what I felt would lead to being shunned from society. Therefore, I hope Milwaukee embraces this inclusive policy over Appling’s fear campaign – not for my benefit, but so that the transgender youth of today may grow up without fear of embracing who they are.