I would like to point out some inaccuracies in Ren Laforme's article concerning the Senate discussion of the possibility of "unisex" bathrooms on campus. The author rightly describes in the first paragraph that the purpose of gender-neutral bathrooms would be to make a safe space for transgender students, or for that matter, other students who desire a safe bathroom space.
Later, however, the author incorrectly uses "hermaphroditic" as a synonym for "transgender". In truth, there are no hermaphroditic people; worms, though, are hermaphrodites. Perhaps the author was confusing transgender people with intersex people. According to the Intersex Society of North America, intersex "is a general term used for a variety of conditions in which a person is born with a reproductive or sexual anatomy that doesn't seem to fit the typical definitions of female or male." Transgender people, according to Wikipedia, "is a general term applied to a variety of individuals, behaviors, and groups involving tendencies that diverge from the normative gender role (woman or man) commonly, but not always, assigned at birth, as well as the role traditionally held by society."
This is an important slip-up. It reflects the lack of gender and sexuality awareness amongst the student body. This lack of awareness translates into false assumptions about individuals, and ultimately ignorant political positions among citizens. For example, it takes an aware citizen to support the Gender Expression Non-Discrimination Act in New York.
I believe that as an institution as a whole, there is a wealth of information at UB if it only were to be sought out. To The Spectrum staff present and future: please make strides to inform yourselves and each other so that future articles may be more informative for the student body. For starters, get in touch with me!
Sincerely,
Kelly Miller
UB Senior
Photo: Courtesy of Laron Fomby
