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Transgender Visibility Guide: Ten Things Every American Ought to Know

1. Seventy-eight percent of American voters believe it should be illegal to fire someone just because they are transgender. (September 2005 Human Rights Campaign/Hart Research poll)

2. Nearly half of the Fortune 100 — America’s most profitable businesses — offer non-discrimination policies that cover gender identity. More and more companies add these protections every year. (Human Rights Campaign, 2007)

3. Eighty-four percent of lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender students report being verbally harassed — name-calling, threats, etc. — at school. (Gay, Lesbian and Straight Education Network, 2003)

4. Hate crimes against LGBT Americans are on the rise, even as other violent crimes continue to decline, and current federal laws do not protect LGBT Americans from hate violence. (FBI Hate Crimes Statistics, 2004)

5. Military regulations deny transgender Americans the right to serve openly, and transgender veterans face significant discrimination in the Veteran s Administration medical system. (Transgender American Veterans Association/Palm Center study, August 2008)

6. In the majority of states, it is still legal to fire someone from his or her job simply for being transgender. While challenges exist, there are many transgender and transgender-friendly faith leaders and communities throughout the United States and beyond.

7. While challenges exist, there are many transgender and transgender-friendly faith leaders and communities throughout the United States and beyond.

8. Throughout history and across cultures, people have expressed themselves in ways that we might consider transgender. Some Native American cultures identify “two-spirited” people as a revered class.

9. According to some estimates, 0.25 to 1 percent of the U.S. population is transsexual. But the actual percentage of transsexual people, and especially those who identify under the broader transgender
identity, is thought to be much higher.

10. Transgender non-discrimination protections in colleges and universities are on the rise, with more and more focus on full protection among institutions of higher learning for students, faculty and staff, including all eight Ivy League institutions. Many colleges and universities now offer genderneutral housing options for students living on campus.