On College Campuses

There we two articles in college newspapers that I came across, one were in my alumna newspaper and the other one from Colorado State University.

Trans-woman uses her story to fight for LGBTQ rights

A Day in the Life

Daily Campus

By Molly Miller

Published: Thursday, December 5, 2013

A year ago, 1st semester English major Calliope Wong was just another high school student going through the college admissions process. However, Wong, a trans-woman, had to address one concern that many students don’t even have to consider: would Smith College, an all-women’s college, review her application despite her not being born female?

Although she was met with opposition from the college, the roadblocks she faced and the awareness she has raised for transgender issues have led to her being honored in Out Magazine’s annual list of 100 important LGBT people as a transgender teen activist.

She is ranked among the likes of the Defense of Marriage Act challenger Edie Windsor, “The Butler” director Lee Daniels and “Big Bang Theory” actor Jim Parson

[…]

Since arriving at UConn, Wong says that there haven’t been any issues regarding her gender.

“I’m really glad that UConn is an inclusive environment,” said Wong. “I’ve received nothing but support from the administration and everyone I’ve dealt with with regards to campus living.”

However, Wong says that there is more that can be done by organizations such as the Rainbow Center to recognize and advocate for transgender people.

“I think further programming on the part of the Rainbow Center surrounding transgender identity and amplifying the voices of transgender students in general would be a welcome step in promoting acceptance of transgender individuals on campus,” Wong said.

I went to grad school at UConn and have worked while I was a student and continue working as an alumna with the Rainbow Center.

The other article is about being gender queer,

Transgender Issues at CSU

Collegian Central

By Mariah Wenzel

2013-12-03

Most people prefer to be called “he” or “she”, but Lo Luthro, a junior psychology major, prefers the gender-neutral terms “ze” and “hirself.” Born female, Luthro is genderqueer and identifies as a member of the transgender community.

The CSU Trans* Umbrella group that Luthro is a part of, includes all those who do not identify with their sex assigned at birth.

[…]

This is true in Luthros case  ze does not consider hirself male or female.

I do not identify with the binary woman or the binary man. I take things from each section. Some days I want to be more feminine and some days I want to be more masculine,” Luthro said.

A lot of people think there’s just trans man and trans woman, but there are a lot of other identities, Luthro said. “It can mean something different to every person.”

Zach Zandt, a CSU alumnus, is also under the transgender umbrella. Zandt was born female, but since he was 20, identifies as a male.

Zandt began the medical transition at 21 and has since had few problems with how he is viewed.

“I’m generally read as a male,” Zandt said. “It can occasionally make daily life awkward, but people let it slide. It just doesn’t cross their minds.”

[…]

“People who violate social expectations for their gender are excluded and made fun of for being different,” Lehmiller wrote. “This can lead to challenges fitting in, difficulties finding a job, as well as personal safety concerns.”

As Lehmiller wrote, when you cross the gender norms people will shun you and discriminate you for being different.