YMCA: Move forward on transgender policy

Re: “YMCA responds after creating a stir with its transgender bathroom policy” (TNT, 10-9).

I am a University of Washington Tacoma student. I love my school and my education. I chose this school because I heavily identified with its values and mission. It has also given me the tools and the awareness to fight injustice.

However recently, I have found myself in a position where I am a part of a community that is discriminating against a class of people. The YMCA’s new locker room policy moves us as a community backward and not forward.

While I understand many parents’ concerns about why they feel unsafe, locker room safety and discrimination are two separate issues. I believe that we can achieve locker room safety without discriminating against a population of people.

I would have liked to see the YMCA open up its process to the public to generate conversation and invite others to help with this concern. Right now, this policy doesn’t live up to the organization’s stated values or mission.

I ask the YMCA to stand by its values and reverse its discriminatory policy. If it does not, I will fight to make sure my tuition fees do not support this organization.

This story was originally published December 7, 2015 at 2:47 PM with the headline "YMCA: Move forward on transgender policy."