The GLBT Center presented the findings of the U.S. Transgender Survey, the largest study on transgender and nonbinary adults on Thursday at Talley Student Union. The study was conducted in 2015 and expanded upon the results of the National Transgender Discrimination Survey, which was completed in 2009.
Andy DeRoin, the program coordinator at the GLBT Center, condensed the vast amount of data from the study into statistics that highlighted every topic covered, as well as facts that are relevant to college-age students, into an overview of the U.S. Trans Survey.
Conducted by the National Center for Transgender Equality and the National LGBTQ task force, the survey was taken online, with the NCTE reaching out to participants that may not have had internet access through local community centers. The recent study had a sample size of 27,715 individuals across all 50 states, which is more than four times the sample size of the National Transgender Discrimination Survey.
The large sample size let researchers expand the scope of the study to include topics such as experiences at school, work, health and family life, in addition to the focus on harassment and violence that was covered in the National Transgender Discrimination Survey.
The survey took a unique approach on how it asked participants about their preferences and experiences, and gave them an option to list their own response if they did not relate to the options already listed.
“More than 500 unique gender terms were submitted to the U.S. Transgender survey,” DeRoin said. “So they were like, ‘how do you identify, check all that apply, and if you don’t see one, write it in.’ They got over 500 responses.”
The study focused on the public perception of transgender and nonbinary individuals. Forty-four percent of nonbinary respondents let strangers assume their gender, due to fears that they may not understand their identity, simply not wanting to talk about it, or because of fears of invalidation from their peers. Forty-seven percent of respondents who were students reported that none of their classmates knew that they were trans.
The statistics displayed in the presentation also revealed the disparities that the transgender and nonbinary communities face when it comes to discrimination in the workplace and within their own families. Most respondents had incomes that were lower than that of the general U.S. population, and nearly one-third were living in poverty. Thirty-five percent of respondents had a full-time job, 11 percent were students and 15 percent were unemployed, which is three times the general U.S. unemployment rate.
The presentation was open to students and faculty, and was followed by a discussion of the how the results of the survey can be applied. Students attending the presentation found that the focus on 18- to 24-year-olds throughout the presentation was helpful, because they could apply it to their own lives.
“I think the focus on college-age students was the most important thing,” said Mackenzie Brown, a sophomore studying aerospace engineering. “Sure, tons of things happen in K-12, but that’s not what this zone is about.”
Along with the discussion of figuring out why some of the statistics are what they are, many proposed ideas of how to be more inclusive of transgender and nonbinary individuals throughout their education and in their day-to-day life.
“I could be a better friend, and be more supportive and try to learn more,” said Jacob Shoemaker, a sophomore studying criminology. “Maybe someday I’ll get into research and try to help.”
Although the survey will not directly affect the GLBT Center’s upcoming plans, it will give the center a source for discussion and a way to reach out to those who may not be aware of the discrimination that transgender individuals face.
According to DeRoin, one of the biggest ways to educate students is pronoun awareness, and the GLBT Center will host an event next month that will focus on how to use pronouns and ask people about their pronouns.
“This survey has crystallized a lot of the information and anecdotes that we’ve gathered over the years,” DeRoin said. “It will definitely inform the kinds of conversations that we’re having.”
As for the larger impact that the survey will have, DeRoin hopes that organizations such as Equality North Carolina will analyze data coming from the south and start a statewide conversation about how inaccessible healthcare for transgender individuals can have dire effects on their mental health.
Although statistics on family relations for transgender and nonbinary individuals have improved, many still face backlash in a tumultuous social and political climate. In a world where questioning the gender binary is still not commonplace, the GLBT Center and the trans and nonbinary community keep fighting for awareness and acceptance.
“When it comes to looking at the experiences of the transgender community, the gender binary isn’t really present there,” DeRoin noted. “The more we can challenge that narrative, the more we can identify things that are negative — like HB2, and we can push back, and resist and change them.”
The full USTS is available online at http://www.ustranssurvey.org/report.
