Transgender

Civil Rights

In a local case that has made not only national news but international as well,  the Colorado Civil Rights Division has ruled that a six year old transgendered male has the right to use the girls bathroom in elementary school. The division ruled that the Fountain-Fort Carson School District violated a state law extending protections to transgendered people and that keeping the ban in place "creates an environment that is objectively and subjectively hostile, intimidating or offensive."

The case started over last years "winter break" and the mother of the child states that the received a call "out of the blue" stating that the child could use the boy's bathroom, nurse's bathroom, or gender-neutral faculty bathrooms but would no longer be permitted to use the girl's bathrooms.

The family did an interview with Katie Couric which provides some background:

The Daily Mail has the full video segment available at the bottom of the page.

The case presents an interesting dilemma in balancing the rights and needs of one against many.  There are 591 students at Eagleside Elementary school and Coy is just one of them.  Was this the right decision?  It may matter little in first grade but what about when the child gets to 10th grade?

The science of gender identity is in its infancy.  We know what gender identity is, but little about how it is formed.  Does the child require treatment? or accommodation?

I find it interesting that the child is one of 3 dizygotic triplets,  his brother appears to identify as male and his sister as female.  Which seems to throw a monkey wrench into the whole nature/nurture discussion.  What are your thoughts?