Get Herald RSSSince I arrived at Brown, there has been a significant amount of discussion and debate over the need for gender-neutral housing and bathrooms. The University deserves credit for promoting gender-neutral housing, especially compared to its peer institutions.
The gender-neutral bathroom question is perhaps less clear-cut, and I submit this is because people disagree about the purpose of a gender-neutral bathroom. While some believe that gender-neutral bathrooms are open to anyone (similar in concept to the bizarrely named "unisex bathrooms" in workplaces), others think that gender-neutral bathrooms are only for those who identify as transgender.
These two hypotheses are irreconcilable, which means that at least one group will be dissatisfied with either outcome. The needs of the transgender community are not served if community members do not respect that space or those who make use of it. On the other hand, if gender-neutral bathrooms were only open to the transgender population, a significant number of restrooms would need to be set aside for use by a very small group.
What is most striking about this issue is how the necessity of gendered bathrooms is never questioned. The assumption behind gendered bathrooms is that gender division suits everyone except transgender students. Once we recognize that gendered bathrooms don't work well for other community members (queer, genderqueer and androgynous students, for example), we can work toward a more tailored solution.
Transgender students are not the only ones for whom gendered bathrooms pose a daily struggle. Any girl who has short hair and wears stereotypically masculine clothing may also be subject to odd glances or rude questions when entering the restroom of her preferred gender choice. The problem with designating a gender-neutral bathroom exclusively for transgender students is that doing so leaves out the majority of people who might find gender neutrality useful, including students whose outward appearance does not mesh with society's view of what a man or a woman is.
By adding one more bathroom on campus that is reserved for a specific group, we are just adding a third option to the gender binary. Rather than promoting equality and acceptance of everyone's individual choices, we are prioritizing some choices over others. If we really want to reserve bathrooms for individual subgroups, we would have to get creative with the signs: "women who people might think look like men (but aren't transgender)," "men who might be mistaken for women (but aren't transgender)," "genderqueer," "I'm in the process of working out my gender identity" and "I can't choose - there are too many options!"
Most Brown students understand that the idea of a sexual orientation binary - that a person is either gay or straight - does not adequately reflect the complexity of sexual identity. Bathrooms are one of the remaining institutionalizations of a gender binary that does not work in our diverse community.
The resolution of an issue such as this depends on the maturity of the vast majority of the community. It's unfortunate that the community at large may not be mature enough to cope with the desegregation of bathrooms. I understand where this mentality comes from. As an outwardly gender-ambiguous woman, I'm relieved when I enter a restroom and someone does not feel the urge to point out, "this is the ladies room, dear." There is no faith that I can either recognize the sexist depiction of a woman on the door or read the sign. How can we therefore expect others to react kindly to all gender-neutral bathrooms and treat the idea with respect?
There is simply no expectation in our society that we could share restrooms between genders, but gender-neutral bathrooms can be implemented with great results. This year in Hope College, all the restrooms are gender-neutral and there haven't been any angry protests or letters to the editor. If we expect community members to act maturely, they probably won't disappoint.
Desegregating bathrooms is not one of my top priorities in terms of changes that should occur at Brown, nor do I think it a likely development during the rest of my time here. I do think that it is not unreasonable to ask people to be mature about this question. Gender binaries don't begin to address the diverse needs of Brown's community. But instead of ripping down all the gendered signs, I'd just ask people to reserve their comments for their own private musings. If someone who looks like a man walks into the women's room, sees a woman and does not immediately turn around, that's a pretty clear indication that she knows what she's doing.
Susannah Kroeber '11 hopes that mall security is never called into a women's room on her account ever again.
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