The importance of owning your identity
Members of the St. Joe’s community do not have the option to update their preferred names on their student IDs due to the set up of the current system, nor are they able to change their preferred name on their class rosters, email addresses or anything else that publicly displays their name through school software.
According to the National Center for Transgender Equality, under Title IX legislation, “Title IX applies to all schools (including both K–12 schools and colleges) that get federal money, including nearly all public schools” and therefore you are protected and “have the right to be called by the name and pronouns that match your gender identity.”
The American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) further asserts, “You have the right to be addressed by the name and pronouns that correspond with your gender identity. This is true even if your name and gender are not legally changed. Your school should use your chosen name and pronouns on everything possible—your student ID, class attendance rosters, yearbook, and more. Your legal name should only appear on your official file.”
Yet, this is not the reality at St. Joe’s. Students, faculty and staff who identify as transgender do not have the ability to change their preferred name unless their name is legally changed.
While there is an apparent update to the software (set to be ready in January) that will allow students and faculty to change their preferred names, this does not ensure accessibility to changing the names on ID cards.
A person’s name is a large part of their identity—it signifies to others who they are. Therefore, when a person who identifies as transgender is referred to by their “dead name” (the name used to identify a person before they transitioned) or is misgendered by use of improper pronouns, that person is invalidated.
At St. Joe’s we value our Jesuit identity: caring for the whole person. It’s imperative that “caring for the whole person” includes respecting a person’s name and thus true identity. We need to do this not only as a matter of respect to uphold the dignity of each individual here, but to validate an already marginalized group on campus by using their proper name.
There are many hurdles for someone transitioning, someone who has gone through the process of transitioning, or for those who identify as nonbinary. Yet those people continue to be put into situations at this institution where they must validate themselves to outsiders and publicly justify their identity.
Imagine being referred to as someone who no longer matches your identity when your professor calls that name from the roster on the first day of class. Imagine swiping into Campion Dining Hall every single day with an ID card that belongs to someone who no longer exists.
By officially recognizing people’s preferred names at St. Joe’s, the institution helps to create an environment that accepts the full identity of a person and sets a precedent encouraging the use of proper pronouns in the classroom because people will no longer be associated with their dead names.
If that doesn’t resonate with you, think of it this way. A person who gets married or divorced makes the decision to change their last name to match their new identity in this next chapter of their life. Yet they can only change their name on any documents after completing loads of paperwork and dedicating the time to dedicate to do so.
The point is that the system in place here makes it extremely difficult even for cisgendered individuals to change their last name, and thus restricts students, faculty and staff in representing their true identities. So imagine the immense disrespect that this system creates towards members of the community who are not cis-privileged.
Our language and how we refer to people who have transitioned matter significantly when it comes to creating an environment of inclusion and diversity. Using the correct gender inclusive language validates those who already have enough difficulties in life and makes sure that nobody is a victim of exclusion.
If students, faculty or staff members have a preferred name that is not the same as their birth name, then that person should have the resources they need to display their name and identity publicly as they would like.
Although the legal name change process is available, not everyone can afford to spend the time or money to go through such a process. At an institution where people are paying for an education or supporting the institution through their employment, they should have all of the support possible from that place to make them feel welcomed.
If we are going to boast this institution as one that works for inclusion and diversity, and as a place that cares for the whole person, then we should start by giving people the option to communicate their preferred name per their decision. In doing so, we are a step closer to caring for the whole person and including all of those who chose to be a part of this community.
—The Editorial Board
This week’s Editorial Board is comprised of the Editor in Chief, Senior Editor, Managing Editor, Copy Chief, Digital Managing Editor, Photo Editor, News Editor, Assistant News Editor, Features Editor, Assistant Features Editor, Online Editor, Opinions Editor and Assistant Opinions Editor. This editorial reflects the views of the Board and not the entire Hawk staff.
