For young people, transgender life means stress and confusion over restrooms, sports and harassmentStephanie Francis Ward, Feature, [Posted Oct 1, 2013 5:19 AM CDT] -
am i missing something here?
Coy Mathis, 7, was born male. But as a toddler Coy chose items traditionally associated with girls, like tutus and swimsuits featuring the cartoon character Dora the Explorer.
Even children as young as Coy may know they are transgender, says Coy's lawyer, Michael D. Silverman, executive director of the Transgender Legal Defense & Education Fund.
"It's body image," says Silverman of New York City. "They know, and often will ask the question: 'Why does my body look like this—and not like that?'"
Coy's parents decided that their child should be treated as a girl everywhere, including school. Initially, the school was "really fantastic" about supporting the Mathis family's decision, Coy's parents said in a February civil rights filing with the Colorado Civil Rights Division.
But that changed in first grade, when the Fountain-Fort Carson School District (near Colorado Springs) and its lawyer decided that Coy could no longer use the girls' restroom, according to the family's filing. Instead, the district decided Coy should use the boys' restroom or single-user restrooms in the health office and the faculty area.
http://www.abajournal.com/magazine/article/a_gender_change_at_a_tender_age/?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=ABA+Journal+Magazine+Stories#When:10:19:28Z
