How do you feel about a bathroom with a sign saying transgender on it?
Definitely not something I would use at all. I can sort of see it's worth if there are people who do not feel comfortable in either the male or female bathroom, and yet are comfortable and safe enough to use something which outs them. I can't see many places where it would certainly be safe enough to use one of these bathrooms as you can never tell who's walking past.
I would be furious if someone tried to make me use the "transgender bathroom" because there's no way I'm outting myself for anyone, especially not if all I want to do is empty my bladder. I spent too long running and hiding using the female bathroom in places where I people believed I was female but I passed. I'm not going to start sneaking around again to stop people thinking of me as anything other than Alex, male.
If it was just there and no one tried to make me use it, in all honesty I'd probably start emailing the owner of the building/company to ask them what on earth they were playing at, and that if they wanted to be inclusive stick a proper unisex bathroom in, not something that singles trans people out as other. As well as being risky in outting people, it's also helping to perpetuate all the rubbish flying around about trans people being able to use the correct bathroom for their gender identity, so when there isn't a "transgender bathroom" around we're likely to get more hassle than before.
Having a picture of what looks like a fusion of the common male and female picture on the sign?
I would have no issue with that representation at all, although it would be interpreted by most as a unisex bathroom. I have no issues at all with unisex bathrooms though, and it would either have no effect upon, or make it more comfortable, for the majority of people.
How would you feel if this was used in all public places as well as how would you feel if this was used at your gender therapist's building where you're getting therapy done?
I touched on half of this before. In public places it would be dangerous, and encourages people to think of us as something which is "other" to cis people. There would be pressure for known trans people, even if they're ones who consistently get read as their gender, to use these hypothetical "transgender bathrooms", providing a constant reminder that they're trans. Even if they weren't pressured into using them, they'd be walking past them every time they're out in public, and I wouldn't want that reminder at all, I just want to live my life.
In a gender clinic/therapist/whatever's building I sort of see a little more sense, but again, what would make this more suitable than a standard unisex toilet? Nothing. I can see that a "transgender bathroom" would be harmful, and personally think that a unisex is highly required in places like that. Not everyone who goes there is ready to come out openly as trans, or may only choose to present as their gender while they're there (especially places like mine where they also hold trans groups), and is worried about other people seeing them.
In my gender clinic there's actually a single stall toilet within the waiting room which is gender neutral, and outside the door to the waiting room there's a gents with three cubicles and a couple of urinals. Even though only one of the cubicle doors lock I'd still rather use an unlocked door in there than the gender neutral one inside. I don't know why, it doesn't really make sense, perhaps it's some bravado to show them that yes, I do live a fully male life, or it could just be that it's habit now.
How would you feel if ALL the restrooms in the gender therapist's building had that sign and word transgender on it, and them saying it's to show and say they accept trans people?
I would counter that train of thought with the arguments I've provided here, and contact the service that we sent complaints and concerns to if they did not immediately change it. I would also warn others in case anyone else is concerned in the same way. I would be very skeptical about their ability to provide support and understanding for the trans community, and would wish I could go somewhere else (in the UK I'd have at least a five month wait before getting to go to another gender identity clinic, but thankfully mine has been wonderful to me). I would not use the toilet on principle, and would pay to use public ones on my way there/go at the train station.
Now again, how would you feel if all restrooms in public had this sign/name, and yes this means no unisex, or male, or female or any other restroom besides this one, so, how would you feel?
I'd be confused and angry. Where would cisgender people go to the bathroom? Why would anyone choose transgender over unisex to put on the doors? Again, I'd be contacting people who made these decisions, or if it miraculously all happened over night I'd probably contact people and start a motion of going around and sticking pieces of paper saying "unisex" over the doors! Anything to get it corrected.
Transgender is not a synonym for unisex/gender neutral, and it shouldn't be treated as such. Putting that word on the doors in that manner would not make it any more accessible or suitable for trans people. All it would serve to do would be to confuse the matter of what a trans person actually is, and whether they should be welcome in gendered toilets.
Perhaps if a place wants to be more trans friendly they should either remove the gendered signage and use unisex signs, or if they still wanted to keep things separate to some degree, perhaps if they didn't want to rip out urinals (although I've been in a unisex toilet where urinals were used alongside cubicals in Belguim), then they could make a slightly poorer attempt at making people feel more welcome with a "trans people welcome" sign. It's a bit of a cop out though.
A bit off topic, but I'm not sure how I'd feel about purely having unisex toilets. In theory it seems like a good idea, but thinking deeper about it I'd worry that women would be concerned by men hearing them dealing with sanitary products. I'm not sure if this is a concern that cis women have, but I would see the possibility, and also men's general lack of knowledge around it, and the confusion they'd have to wards the bins. You'd never know that they'd think they were, or what they'd put in them. I've heard stories about tuna sandwiches being put into bins in soley female bathrooms and stinking the place out, and they should have known better really!
