Dear President,

There are many problems associated with transgender rights whether you are for or against them. Transgender individuals are not given the rights that the rest of the cisgender people have received. I believe that all people no matter their sexuality, race, gender, or identity should be heard and listened to.

Cisgender is everyone who agrees with their assigned gender. A rough estimate of trans people in the U.S. is about 0.3% (1 out of every 300). Transgender is an umbrella term, a broad statement of words put into a similar category. Transgender means that the person's personal identity doesn't agree with the gender that they were assigned at birth. Transsexual means that the person must seek medical assistance to help them transition into their preferred identity. Genderqueer people are neither feminine nor masculine. Pangender people feel as though they identify with all genders. Transgender also includes cross dressers no matter their gender identity. Transgender people may also differ in their sexual orientation. In 1979 Christine Jorgensen said "Gender doesn't have to do with bed partners, it has to do with identity."

Around the world about 1 transgender person is killed every 3 days. Not including suicides or natural causes. In 2016 so far 30 transgender people have been murdered. Transgender are denied access to join the armed forces in the U.S. Transgender people don't always get to feel safe if they are forced to use the restroom that corresponds with their assigned gender. There are many parents that are scared to send their little girl into the men's restroom in fear of them being assaulted or insulted in some way. Trans people in school will go through anything they can to avoid the restrooms and it can end in many different medical problems because they feel unsafe or judged when they walk into a restroom that doesn't let them feel comfortable. Rules in the UK is that if a transgender individual has been transitioning for more than 2 years they automatically obtain the rights to their acquired gender. We as a country like to think that we no longer have discrimination but we are trying to segregate the transgender people from the rest of us. Students feel as though they have to deal with harassment and mislabeling in schools and that they have no way out of it, unlike the rest of the cisgender community.

I believe that this is a worldwide problem and that we all need to take a step back and look at the whole picture. We have laws about discrimination, so what makes this topic any different than the others? We have fixed the discrimination issues between women and men, white's and black's, religion, age, disability, and many others. Now it is time to talk about the transgender issues so we can fix them and continue to desegregate our country.

Sky Newberry