Statesman.com – By Julia Gronnevet
New York – For transgender people, the choice between the men’s room and the women’s room often leaves them stuck in the middle with crossed legs and nowhere to go. They are faced with harassment from security guards, police officers and other restroom users for appearing to use the “wrong bathroom.”
“There isn’t a person who hasn’t had an awkward experience in a bathroom,” said Bailey Stevens, a member of the Bathroom Liberation Front.
Transgender people experience a much more severe problem than just occasional awkwardness, Stevens said. Every time transgendered people use the bathroom, someone who feels a sexually ambiguous person doesn’t belong in the restroom might confront him or her.
“This is definitely a problem,” said J. Riley, who lives in Washington. “I used to have to use the women’s bathroom at work while I was transitioning, and even though I had facial hair I had to use the ladies’ room.”