Students Protest Transgender Bathroom Policy

High school students in New York organized a walkout to protest against transgender bathroom policy. Currently the school has a policy in place that allows students to use the restroom that corresponds to their gender identity preference.

The Protest

The demonstration took place at John Jay High School,

Within the Wappingers Central School District.

Makes Them Uncomfortable

A senior at John Jay High School, Shauna Neilan said,

“A bunch of people from our school, John Jay, feel uncomfortable.”

Individual Spaces

She said,

“We want to change that and give them their own spaces to make us more comfortable and them more comfortable.”

Petition Initiated

Neilan put together and initiated a petition,

Describing reported incidents that involve a transgender student in the bathroom.

Superintendent

Wappingers Central School District Superintendent, Dwight Bonk, made a statement that he did not have any knowledge of those occurrences.

Bonk mentioned that the school will have discussions on the code of conduct with students who joined the protest.

Opposition Protest

Cory Pittore,

a senior at the school, participated in a counter-protest.

‘We Are Human’

Pittore said, “We are human, just like everyone else.

I, myself, have been struggling with this for so long, and I just feel like we shouldn’t be silenced because we’re human ourselves.”

Pittore Continued

Pittore who was born biological female identifies as a male, went on to say,

“I feel as though that we shouldn’t be silenced no matter what.”

Advocacy Of Democracy

Per Spectrum News, a group called Defense of Democracy,

focused on promoting inclusivity, spearheaded the organization of the counter-protest.

Abides By The Law

Bonk said the school adheres to the law,

“Under state and federal laws (including Title IX and New York State’s Dignity for All Students Act), school districts are required to provide access to transgender students to the restroom of the sex with which they identify, which may not be the student’s sex assigned at birth,” he said.

Transgender Students

According to a cable News 12 Westchester, one of the organizers said,

“It is not enough to just stand up with trans students, we must fight their oppressors,”

Population Of Transgender

Statement made,

“The District is fully aware of its obligations to its transgender population (as well as to the entirety of the student body) under these laws and remains fully committed to protecting these students and ensuring that they can safely access these rights,”

Freedom Of speech

He said,

“I was personally present at the school during the protest and the students had the opportunity to exercise their free speech rights to express their positions in a manner which is both respectful, safe, and in accordance with the requirements of the School District and governmental authorities,”

Peaceful Protest

His statement said the protest

“involved approximately 20 students that was peaceful and concluded without incident.”