Transgendered Student Denied Equal Treatment

By Emily Thomas, HuffingtonPost

A transgender college sophomore who identifies as male has been barred from living in all-male dorms, and now his lawyer has lodged a federal complaint against the university.

George Fox University, a Christian school in Newberg, Ore., says officials denied the student’s December request to live with his male friends because of the school’s “theological commitments.” The university says it’s in the process of implementing a policy that only permits housing arrangements based on birth sex, according to a letter obtained by PQ Monthly, a Portland-based LGBT magazine.

At the time, the university gave the student, who is identified as Jayce, two alternative living options for the 2014-2015 school year, according to the outlet. The first option was to live off campus with his male roommates, as long as he notified their parents about the arrangement and changed his name and sex on his driver’s license and social security card. The other option was to live alone.

“While I appreciate university administrators meeting with me regarding my housing requests, their ultimate decision makes me feel rejected, misunderstood, and punished for something I cannot change,” Jayce told PQ Monthly.

[…]

In a Change.org petition letter that asks the university to reverse its decision.

Read the full article.

ABHM offers online exhibits full of Black history.

Read more breaking news.