Transgender New Yorkers Face Scorn and Violence Using Public Restrooms
October 1, 2012 6:54am | By Andrea Swalec, DNAinfo Reporter/Producer
http://www.dnainfo.com/new-york/20121001/greenwich-village/transgender-new-yorkers-face-scorn-violence-using-public-restrooms (http://www.dnainfo.com/new-york/20121001/greenwich-village/transgender-new-yorkers-face-scorn-violence-using-public-restrooms)
MANHATTAN — Long before her boyfriend was slashed for defending her against an alleged gay-slur-spewing McDonald's patron who questioned her use of the ladies' room, Jalisa Griffin came to dread each time she needed to use a public bathroom.
Griffin, 22, who identifies as transgender, said she is harassed at least once a week when she uses women's bathrooms, where people seem to feel free to bombard her with dirty looks and nasty comments.
That hostility led to violence on Sept. 19, when McDonald's customer Keith Patron allegedly began calling Griffin and boyfriend Jamar McClod names when Griffin tried to use the women's bathroom at the West Third Street fast-food eatery.