By Jerika L.H.
Students, community members and political activists have expressed disappointment over the removal of gender neutral bathroom signs by several administrative employees of Mrak Hall.
For the past 13 days, numerous media outlets have written about the collection of student activists who have occupied Mrak Hall as a symbolic display of their dedication to administrative accountability. However, the occupation has also been an opportunity to shed light on issues that go beyond the ethical fouls of Chancellor Katehi and speak to wider community problems within the UC. One particular issue is the attrition of gender neutral bathrooms on campus, and the limited spaces in which transgender and non-binary individuals can feel safe and – just as important- be themselves, unapologetically.
Among the diverse group of students reclaiming the space of Mrak Hall are countless transgender and nonbinary members of the UC community. Contrary to popular belief, transgender folk are not few and far between. As victims of erasure, they go up against dominant ideologies which desperately try to reconcile them as anomalies. Their removal from the politics of quotidian life and relegation to the margins of inclusivity serve as a testament to their ongoing strife for visibility. Therefore, the issue of inclusive bathrooms is a much larger issue that people might realize.
When the space was initially occupied, the group of students made a decision to designate nearby public restrooms as a safe space for all to use. To this end, protesters placed handmade signs that read “Gender Neutral/ Inclusive Bathroom- End Segregation” over the male/female door symbols. The signs mysteriously disappeared on Friday, but remained throughout the weekend when they were replaced. On Monday, however, when the employees of the Office of Research returned, the signs were taken down again. Plagued by the question of who and why, one student decided to sit and wait in the hallway to see who was removing the handmade placards.
Shortly thereafter, a UC employee emerged from the Office of Research and made their way to the bathroom- casually ripping down the appeals for gender neutral inclusivity that had been placed on the walls as a reminder of the transgender presence within the community.
BB Buchanan explains: “We weren’t trying to confront folks because we figured people just didn’t know. We included other signs to let people know and educate them that trans people were in fact here in this space. But that sign also got taken down. That is when we realized that if we want this to be an occupation that is intersectional -that makes all the people who are in it feel safe, then we needed to address it…The next time my fellow occupier [saw the signs being removed] they confronted them and let them know that [the signs] are for the safety of trans people. The employee replied ‘I don’t care about trans people. I don’t want to pee in the same bathroom as a man”’.
For the next several hours, UC employees were documented tearing down transgender awareness signs and posters just as soon as they were replaced by students. Students watched as their pleas for inclusivity were crumpled in the palms of administrative leaders and thrown into the garbage can, with no explanation or dialogue. They recorded several individuals from the Office of Research continually removing them as they ignored students inquiries as to why they were offended by the presence of transgender and nonbinary people.
The Office of Research has had its own problematic history in regards to inclusivity. In Fall of 2015, a man of color came forward about the continued harassment he faced as a black employee working in Mrak Hall. He described the experience as being extremely threatening and discriminatory. He was continuously put on display by his fellow co-workers as they became exceedingly preoccupied with his blackness. (https://davisvanguard.org/2015/10/social-justice-group-concerned-about-alleged-ucd-racial-incidents/)
These incidents lead us to wonder why the concept of inclusivity is so threatening to the same homogenous staff that supposedly prides itself on diversity and rainbow-style demographic pamphlet displays. While the issue of the transgender bathroom signs was quelled by an intermediary, it sheds light on administrative attitudes towards non-binary people and the upper tier workers’ unwillingness to share “their” space. Thus, while transgender students pay the $16,000 tuition fee just like anyone else, the distribution of accessible facilities is regarded as outside of the parameters of a campus necessity. To put that in perspective, imagine if there were only a few stalls on a 5,300 acre campus which were open to you. That alone, not including issues of harassment, highlights why gender neutral bathrooms are an issue that requires attention, or at the very least respect. While the UC Davis campus has installed some gender neutral bathrooms in varying places, they were only granted after the tireless efforts of community groups and were not easily approved by the UC. As the conduct within Mrak Hall showcases, the UC administration still has a long way to go when it comes to understanding what inclusion is. It is a symptom of a larger issue that pervades many of those who wield power in our society. It also goes back to the issue of accountability that has been the overarching goal of the Mrak occupation.
“Katehi works on that floor. She works right next to these people. This is indicative of the upper administration’s belief that they are above the needs of students- that a gender neutral bathroom is something for students but not for upper level management. It never even crossed their minds that there could be gender neutral people working there amongst them.” Says BB. “I am occupying Mrak Hall because Katehi offered up lots of vapid, shallow words about inclusion and the principles of community, but when push comes to shove, little is done to actualize it. It is an intersectional struggle- this movement and the people who occupy this space [represent] varying levels of privilege. Yet we’re making this a space where people can come together to recognize the issues impacting our community. No one should feel in danger and that they can’t use the bathroom.”
As for the employees? The students were assured that they will be retrained in accordance to UC policies of community. Yet, as BB expands, it’s not just about those select individuals who were featured on film. “ This isn’t some witch hunt for the people that were caught. There were plenty of other people that were tacitly supporting it. Im interested in a change of the system itself and how it upholds the gender binary that makes trans and queer people invisible. We are not a token. We aren’t the fun minorities that don’t make waves. This really impacts the lives of transgender people and we require it to be taken seriously.”
Many in the UCD community are drawing parallels to an incident that occurred last November in which UC employees removed a list of chalked names that stood as a memorial to those killed by 
police brutality. Vice Chancellor Dave Lawlor released an email apologizing for the incident, noting that the names were removed by accident. Lawlor resolves the email by saying “ Freedom of expression is valued by all of us here at the University, and we want students to know that we hear you and we respect your words and actions.” Yet students feel they have experienced a blatant disregard for the non-binary/transgender community during their time in the administrative lair.
Transgender inclusivity is a dialogue that requires increasingly more discussion in public spaces. Regardless of where you fall on the issue, it is difficult to refute the statistics on the significant social barriers transgender individuals face, most of which are deeply rooted in social intolerance and transphobia. While some have taken to social media to bash the protestors for what one user called “capricious anger”, transgender community members and their allies remain firm that attitudes of transphobia contribute to serious violence, which many have lost their lives over.
Transgender murders have reached historical highs in recent years, with most victims being people of color. A 2015 Human Rights Campaign report indicates that among the 53 documented cases cited by the study, not a single perpetrator was prosecuted, nor was the death recorded as a hate crime. Prejudice based on gender identity still eludes many state discrimination laws as to what constitutes the motivating bias. Historically, many people who identified as transgender were institutionalized, received barbaric shock therapy, and faced numerous other cruelties that sprang from the medicalization of personal identity politics. Although the transgender community is gaining more visibility, they are still exceedingly more likely to face extreme poverty, job discrimination leading to unemployment, discrimination in access to housing, and continuously fall victim to public harassment and belittlement. These stark facts are cited by trans activists as being indicators of “cisprivilege”- or the privilege that one has when they feel aligned to their biological sex within the male/female binary. This is form of privilege is embodied in many daily activities such as clothes shopping, filling out forms, and most commonly – going to the bathroom.
While some argue that transgender people could simply use the bathroom that indicates their biological sex, this invokes some of the same problematic issues that are present in different but relevant instances of discrimination: when people with disabilities are told to simply eat somewhere else if a restaurant is not wheelchair accessable, when breastfeeding mothers are told to go to the bathroom to nourish their babies so others aren’t made uncomfortable, and when couples within the LGBTQI community are told to please not publically engage in displays of affection in certain spaces. As the struggle for transgender inclusivity wages on, students have vowed not only to remain in Mrak Hall but also to continue to challenge the ideology of the dominant norm. For more information about the aforementioned statistics, please visit http://www.lgbtmap.org/unfair-price-transgender
Posted by Brandon Buchanan on Tuesday, March 15, 2016
Yes, the only answer is to give non-binary/transgender community a safe space too. Are there any buildings left?
So now I have white privilege and cisprivilege. Who knew I should be ashamed for identifying as a man.
I find it interesting that your reaction to the idea that you might have privilege is to react with shame. Instead I think the response should be awareness and recognition. Perhaps empathy.
You’re wrong, I was reacting with sarcasm. I don’t have any shame for identifying with my biological sex.
I understand that. I’m refuting your sarcasm. The point still stands – why would you respond with anything but empathy. Not everyone was given the clear gender map you were.
I am offended by these people with their problems, who don’t want to fit in with anyone except themselves. Buildings that were built nearly 100 years ago are not going to have all the amenities today’s architecture enjoy. Bathrooms were built to avoid leaving the building while performing natural bodily functions
It is not a pickup joint, social area, meeting place or separate area celebrating their Gender, Transgender, or lack of any gender. It is a step up from a hole in the ground to perform a bodily function we all share. For the same inhibited reason we have Male and Female facilities, now LGBTQIA persons are unable to use a stall with a door and toilet paper? In lots of restaurants I use either when available, because they are single person size rooms. No one has complained, and is rather amused I thought of it, since people standing in line with an empty room equipped for the same purpose is right beside it.
Is there some bodily function they need more equipment to perform we need to understand? A Wheelchair stall is too small? Toilet paper is not adequate? What? Education is important, but I don’t hear about any of this, they want to stare at people like themselves while they relieve themselves?
I am not trying to sarcastic, but I need more information, which these people are not providing. I thought they just had to pee and poop with the rest of us.
BP
“Who knew I should be ashamed for identifying as a man.”
Why would you equate privilege with the need for shame ? Is it not possible to recognize that you have enjoyed privileges that others have been denied and want the same for them without shame ?
Just last night I saw a report where students at Emory University had drawn “Trump 2016” signs around campus with chalk which caused an uproar.
The poor little student feels afraid by a chalk sign supporting a current candidate.
The administration issued this response:
So at UCD the administration is apologizing for removing political chalk graffiti but at Emory the admin is looking to find the perpetrators and prosecute. Free speech is alive and well on our campuses. (Yes David, I’m being sarcastic)
http://gawker.com/word-trump-written-in-chalk-terrifies-harms-emory-st-1766477207
It looks like the students have created a hostile work environment for the pictured employee above by forcing her to share a bathroom with someone that has XY chromosomes. If the University does not quickly create a safe space for her to work then they should expect a letter from her union’s lawyer notifying them of a lawsuit.
Good point Sam. Those employees have the right to feel ‘safe’ too.
“ If the University does not quickly create a safe space for her to work then they should expect a letter from her union’s lawyer notifying them of a lawsuit.”
I wouldn’t be surprised. Yet another example of our contentious, litigious, adversarial society at work !
Jerika wrote:
> When the space was initially occupied, the group of students made
> a decision to designate nearby public restrooms as a safe space for all to use.
Any idea if the same kids plan to change the signs on the “black only” “safe space” to make it a “safe space for all to use” or if they support changing “black lives matter” signs to “all lives matter” to “support all people”?
Which bathroom should a transgendered individual use?
Which bathroom should a woman who doesn’t want to pee next to an individual who has male anatomy use?
How would they even know? Who is checking? Who is enforcing?
What bathroom should someone transitioning use?
Back atcha…..Same goes for someone who’s transitioning, how would someone else even know? There’s almost always private stalls in every public restroom.
You aren’t taking account identity and attire
David wrote:
> What bathroom should someone transitioning use?
To make life easy you should use the bathroom where you look like you belong. On the days you are dressed as “Bruce” (with jeans and a US Olympic team jacket) use the men’s bathroom and on the days you are dressed at “Caitlyn” (with a skirt and tube top) use the woman’s bathroom…
SOD… makes sense to me… the simplest answer is most often the best…
hpierce wrote:
> the simplest answer is most often the best…
It is sad that the schools don’t teach Occam’s razor to aid in decision making. Picking the bathroom where you best fit in is a lot easier than making the University have 58 different bathrooms for each dorm floor:
Agender
Androgyne
Androgynous
Bigender
Cis
Cisgender
Cis Female
Cis Male
Cis Man
Cis Woman
Cisgender Female
Cisgender Male
Cisgender Man
Cisgender Woman
Female to Male
FTM
Gender Fluid
Gender Nonconforming
Gender Questioning
Gender Variant
Genderqueer
Intersex
Male to Female
MTF
Neither
Neutrois
Non-binary
Other
Pangender
Trans
Trans*
Trans Female
Trans* Female
Trans Male
Trans* Male
Trans Man
Trans* Man
Trans Person
Trans* Person
Trans Woman
Trans* Woman
Transfeminine
Transgender
Transgender Female
Transgender Male
Transgender Man
Transgender Person
Transgender Woman
Transmasculine
Transsexual
Transsexual Female
Transsexual Male
Transsexual Man
Transsexual Person
Transsexual Woman
Two-Spirit
The smell?
A real conundrum is encountered by the androgenously dressing hermaphrodite–what to do, who to sue?
This is a very disrespectful comment. Your transgendered neighbors and fellow citizens experience enough discrimination and hostility as it is.
You really believe that someone who identifies as a woman, wears female attire, but still has male genitalia should use the men’s bathroom? That’s an invitation to disaster.
See above, you answered your own question.
Question: If someone identifies as a male, wears male attire, but still lacks male genitalia, do you believe they should use the women’s rest room? [BTW, your use of the term ‘bathroom’ (where one bathes, usually naked), instead of restroom is interesting]. That would not be an “invitation to disaster”, right? It’s only males who create disasters, right?
My answer is that I think we can move beyond gendered restrooms in most cases.
David, I know many women that would be happy to use the men’s restroom if the line for the women’s is too long. However, there’s the problem of urinals and exposure. With stalls there is more privacy, but men tend to stand to urinate and there’s that issue of aim and splashing. I don’t think women would like using the toilet after men they are not related to leaving fluids behind. Women, not wanting to touch anything, will omit flushing.
You have to acknowledge that public bathrooms with infrequent maintenance necessitate gender separation. However, an acceptance of gender identity or even non-gender identity has to exist and allowed. Then a restroom ettiquite has to be developed, learned, understood and closely followed. Just putting a sign on the door doesn’t do this.
Which bathroom should a 100% female person use, if the ‘designated’ restroom has a line, and there is “urgency”? Should a male feel fully free to use any restroom? Sounds like the simple answer is that restrooms are restrooms… and let’s be inclusive… I believe there are shower facilities on campus… in the dorms, in the ARC, etc. Should these not be open to all as well?
If there is to be a change, let’s not go half-stepping…
“I believe there are shower facilities on campus… in the dorms, in the ARC, etc. Should these not be open to all as well?”
Excellent idea! I’m sure that would increase the number of applicants to UC Davis, which would enable the university to set even higher admission standards and rise even higher in the national academic rankings.
Of course, gender neutral showers might tend to disproportionately increase the number of male applicants, but isn’t it worth doing the experiment to find out?
Good, UCD needs more males. Currently they’re only 40% of the student enrollment.
Sexist!
Only 40% identify as MALE or is that what the UC defines them as? Showers and sports is already a better place to define the players’ needs than “restrooms,” I agree. I have seen some showers with stalls and doors, but only on TV like MASH.
In applications at UC, the biggest definition seems to be “Hispanic” or “Non-Hispanic”.
Someone asked “who’s checking”… there are some out there who might… but their “interests” may be ‘hard-wired’ as well, so we shouldn’t discriminate against them…
“Which bathroom should a transgendered individual use?”
They should be using single stall restrooms that the University has identified or constructed for them. Like ADA laws a reasonable accommodation should be made. Taking over a floor in a building and then demanding that their surroundings be adjusted to suit their needs and wants is not reasonable.
The protestors initially had a very clear message and goal. The Chancellor needs to resign because she accepted additional employment with companies that presented a direct conflict of interest with her job at UCD. The protesters should have really stuck with that message. Now they are protesting:
Katehi’s conflicts of interest.
Regents can’t work for companies that invest clients’ money in for-profit colleges.
Regents can’t work for banks that help students get Federal Student loans.
Labor unions should select the next chancellor.
The chancellor is overpaid.
The need for gender neutral restrooms on campus.
Yes, these student activists move from one ’cause’ to another because they’re all about disruption and trying to bully the administration to adhere to their beliefs.
I can tell you, different students involved in this than other issues.
Ummm, they’re applying the signs in the MRAK restrooms aren’t they?
yes. And they are different from the BLM people.
But it’s the same group that’s occupying MRAK and calling for Katehi to get fired and now advocating for another ’cause’. Sam’s point stands.
Different, how so?
Different individuals
Arrrg . . . doesn’t the above quote say the original occupiers made the decision about the bathrooms?
Which BLM people, David? The Oregon ones protesting the Bureau of Land Management practices, Black Lives Matter, can think of many BLM’s…
I have no problem with people entering a bathroom that they deem appropriate for them. I certainly am not going to check on whether the person has a penis or a vagina. Bathroom visits are quick. Go in, handle business, wash your hands and leave. Very little eye contact or conversation. I think that most people would not bother to check either.
However, putting up paper signs covering the bathroom choices without authorization is not OK.
Just look at the existing signs, use the bathroom that you think is appropriate for you and be done with it.
I happened to use a gender neutral bathroom in northern Europe (Belgium?) at a truck stop, and didn’t feel comfortable. Neither did our female friend. I also felt uncomfortable decades ago when they had gender neutral bathrooms in the Berkeley dorms.
I thought it was very interesting that Cait Jenner said it is more difficult being conservative in Hollywood than it is being transgendered.
Good point. I want conservative only bathrooms. I find it impossible to wiz comfortably with liberals around me.
The right decision is actually for the students to leave Mrak in peace and let the staff get back to work.
Yes, but had they done that we would have missed out on this scintillating conversation…
What’s next? Demand transgender college sports programs because why should someone who feels female in a male’s body have to play on the men’s team?
This is the first I’ve heard that transgender restrooms were an issue at Mrak. The reason I was asking about if it was the same people is that the article implies it is, DG implies it is not.
I believe it is important for protestors of anything stay on point to get their point across. The idea that every grievance is up for examination may sound good, but it dilutes the message (alienates allies) and the chance of success.
I want Katehi fired. Occupiers, stay on point!
I agree with Alan that they need to stay on point and we can only hope that the kids in Mrak don’t bring up any demands related to Israel before the weekend (since people will probably forget their original demand to get rid of Katehi)…
I hope they don’t run afoul of the sexual predators in Mrak…
I’ve (reluctantly) used single-person restrooms marked for “women”, when the men’s (single) restroom is locked for extended periods. I leave it exactly as I found it (with the toilet seat down), and clean. Nevertheless, I’m sure it’s just a matter of time before someone yells at me (for no real reason that I can see).
Who cares about single-person restrooms? Lock yourself in and it does not matter what anyone else thinks or might be uncomfortable with. I think the issue is how can everyone be made to feel comfortable in the multi-person bathrooms. Seems to me that this is a bathroom design issue. The standard is based on the biologically-correct assumption that there are two sexes and that people filter into those two groups.
But what about men with “shy-badder’ syndrome having to hang-out and urinate in a trough with a shoulder-to-shoulder line of other men doing the same. Those poor dudes need a stall! And now we are talking about so many ambiguous sex people too… how are those poor people doing to do their business with less ambiguous people right next to them.
Seems to me that we just need to get rid of urinals and have all stalls with high enough walls and a door lock and then everyone is able to do their business in what is really a single-person “room’ within a bigger room. Washing hands can be a multi-person, multi-sex, ambiguous sex thing… who cares… don’t know anyone with shy hand-washing syndrome.
Good points. However, I still think there are some who would object to the “wrong” sex using (even) a single-person restroom, let alone a shared restroom. That’s why I brought it up. (Why else would single-person restrooms be designated for a particular sex?) I’ll try to keep you posted, if I get yelled at (on the way out, for example).
I like the idea of increased privacy for stalls, without designating the entire space for any particular sex. (Lots of retrofitting, though.)
I have no problem whatsoever with anyone of a different sex (and/or transgender) using any restroom. Not sure what the big deal is for some (but obviously not you). (Occasionally, I almost believe that you once had long hair and played in a rock band!)
I think common sense should prevail. New construction (new buildings), add a 3rd option. But I don’t think going around the whole campus retrofitting everything for potential hurt feelings is the way to go. Be open, be respectful, understanding, but get on with life.
I wish I could say that I am surprised at the comments here. Sadly, these comments only show just how far we have to come as a community to be truly inclusive. People have a inherent right to self determination. That means they ought to be able to use the restroom in peace. These students have made Mrak Hall their own space, and they have a right to be themselves in that space. Whats wrong with a gender neutral bathroom anyways? What business is it of ours what gender someone identifies as?
What’s wrong if the women, as shown in the pics, want to have a restroom for females only because they feel uncomfortable doing their business with men in the room? Do they also have the right to feel safe and use the restroom in peace as you say?
These students are illegally trespassing. Don’t the people that were already there and work on the premises have the right to be themselves without having their work space trampled on by student activists and their agendas?
Good point. Maybe this isn’t as simple as I first thought. Nothing to do with transgender issue, but perhaps a more basic safety concern.
“Safety”, or potentially false “sense of safety”? If a sexual predator was present, does anyone really think a sign will deter them? That’s NUTS!
As we have found on our nation’s campuses, feeling ‘safe’ is the new activist buzzword. Well, if it works for them then why not women who don’t feel safe or comfortable using a restroom with males?
I don’t know if it’s “nuts”. I think this is an issue that requires input from women. I just envisioned a scenario in which a predator (usually a man) waits in a restroom for a woman to enter (with no one else around). Could happen anyway, but right now – a man would be challenged if he were seen lurking around in a women’s restroom. (Again, I don’t think this potential concern has anything to do with transgender individuals.)
I have no particular view regarding this issue, other than finding reasonable solutions that work well enough for everyone.
Let me ask you this BP, who are you to define which gender a person must identify as? If someone identifies as a woman, they ought to be able to use a woman’s bathroom. If someone has a problem using the bathroom next to someone who identifies as gender non conforming, its on them to adjust. People have a right to identify with whichever gender they choose.
Why is it on them to adjust? Why do they have to share their restroom with a man who identifies as a woman if they feel uncomfortable with it? Why can’t the gender non-conforming person adjust and just use their biological bathroom?
Because that’s not their gender.
Uh… they could always choose not to use the public restroom… use of a public restroom, according to one’s ‘preferences’ is not a God-given, inalienable right! It is a convenience, an amenity.
I for one, really don’t care who shares a restroom with me as long as they don’t interfere with my purpose in being there… I remember in HS sharing the showers with lots of guys, and even though it was a little off-putting to discover that one guy got visibly excited about it, as long as he didn’t approach me, it was OK.
Uh, well it also seems it’s someone’s God-govin inalienable right to feel ‘safe’ on campus and we’ve heard from the constant cries from the activist students.
Psst. I used the wheelchair stall whenever I can. Lots more room in there..
Thank you Don.
First world problem. Move on.
I’m very disappointed that the Vanguard would post photographs of women outside of or going into restrooms. Regardless of the merits of the issues discussed above, I consider it sexual harassment to post such photos. Really, really shameful.