Editor’s note: This column was a collaboration between Karla Perez and Grace “Gray” Reed. Perez explains the reasons SU’s campus needs gender-inclusive individual bathrooms, and Reed shows — from their perspective as a non-binary student — why they are a necessity.

Moving into a residence hall for college can be a dreaded experience. Whether it’s worrying about how to do laundry, sharing a room with a stranger or purchasing shower shoes, the transition is not an easy one. Students are expected to feel at home in a situation that is not always the most inclusive, which makes everyday experiences unnecessarily challenging. This is especially true for those students who have to think twice before entering a single-gendered, communal bathroom.

Syracuse University has a two-year housing requirement that forces students to live in residential halls their first and second year. However, out of the 21 residential halls on campus, only eight have what is labeled on the website as “gender-inclusive individual bathrooms,” more commonly known as pod bathrooms. Out of the large population of SU underclassmen, only a few are lucky to be assigned to a residence hall with inclusive bathrooms, while the rest have to deal with the discomfort of communal showers and toilets.

Even though no student enjoys the communal bathroom experience, this especially is an issue for students who belong to the LGBTQ community. The problem with assigning a gender to something as essential as a bathroom is that it forces those who don’t identify with a binary gender to make a complicated decision in a habitual moment. No one should ever feel uncomfortable when performing a basic human need.

Not only do gendered communal bathrooms pose a distressing question for students who identify as non-binary, but they also create an uncomfortable situation for some transgender students. It is possible that a trans student who decides to use the gendered bathroom they align with might be verbally or physically harassed and questioned by other users, making them feel unsafe. Almost two-thirds of transgender students avoid school bathrooms because they fear harassment, according to research from GLSEN.

Because students are away from home, residence halls are now their new homes, so they should provide comfort and safety for students of all identities. There are only a few gender-inclusive bathrooms in every building on campus, as the LGBTQ Resource Center map shows. Students shouldn’t have to deal with this same issue in their homes. Not having gender-neutral bathrooms in dorms is inhospitable to some students, who, like all students, are already experiencing college stress.

SU should renovate all residence halls to include gender-inclusive, individual bathrooms. With its two-year housing requirement and limited housing options which fill up fast, it is not fair for students to be forced to live in a residence hall that doesn’t have the bathroom options they prefer.

Even though the SU has the LGBTQ+ Living Learning Community, students shouldn’t have to feel the need to live there just out of fear of being uncomfortable with things such as communal gendered bathrooms. Renovating the residence halls would ensure that members of different identities can live with one another in comfort and safety.

Using a bathroom is an essential need for everyone. When these needs aren’t met adequately, students might feel unsafe or uncomfortable in college. Updating all the bathrooms in the residence halls could help alleviate this added stress that some LGBTQ students carry while also providing a more inclusive environment for diversity in residential halls.

It is time SU acknowledges that its diverse student population deserves better living conditions and that communal, single-gendered bathrooms are a thing of the past.

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As someone who identifies as non-binary, I feel as if I am lucky to live in a residence hall that has the pod style bathrooms. Not all genderqueer students have that option, especially during their first year when they have little to no say in their housing situations. When I am in a situation where I have to use gender bathrooms, I tend to use the women’s room just because it is what I am used to. Not everyone is comfortable with doing this, however. This is why SU needs to implement more gender neutral bathrooms: not all genderqueer individuals feel comfortable picking one side of the binary or another.

The increased presence of gender neutral bathrooms on campus not only will help make these students feel more comfortable, but it will help erase the idea that life needs to be divided into binary. If this does not happen, it leaves room for many students on this campus to feel insecure in a place where they may feel most vulnerable.

Karla Perez is a freshman magazine, news and digital journalism major. Her column appears biweekly. She can be reached at ksperezd@syr.edu. Grace “Gray” Reed is a freshman magazine, news and digital journalism major. Their column appears bi-weekly. They can be reached at greed04@syr.edu.

Published on April 19, 2022 at 12:00 am