The Trans Student Union (TSU) is a new club that allows both trans students and allies to work together in order to spread acceptance and awareness of the trans community at Sequoia. The club meets during lunch on Mondays in room 216.
The transgender identity has faced discrimination throughout history, fighting back against the healthcare bans and lack of fair representation in American media. As a result, communities and movements were created to support trans people and promote equal rights for that segment of the LGBTQ+ community.
According to William’s Institute of University of California, Los Angeles, 1.93 percent of youth in California identify as transgender, which is approximately 49,100 people. Trans youth are present across public high schools in California, meaning that the creation of a safe and supportive club is necessary to uplift this group.
“I think it provides a really good community space, especially for students who are transgender. [It is also] a safe place to hang out and make new friends,” senior TSU member Peyton White said.
The club was founded this year with the intention to provide a safe and welcoming environment for trans students, and to educate Sequoia’s student body of the community.
“Me and [co-founder] Maverick have both witnessed lots of transphobia at Sequoia, not just in the hallways, but in classrooms as well. [In response to this], we wanted to create a trans-positive space where we could chill out [and have fun making art],” sophomore TSU founder Celeste Carpinelli said.
Despite a lot of progress made with the Trans Movement across the country, transphobia still continues to appear, especially in the face of many recent bills and laws against gender-affirming care in many states, negatively impacting the trans community. A lot of these new laws and regulations limit the options of places trans people live in, or the people they interact with, in fear of being ostracized.
“Transphobia [still exists] in our community, I think it’s very ingrained in [people], it just comes off as jokes [to everyone],” sophomore TSU member Lyn Leonard said.
Although transphobia is not always explicit, it can be shown in more subtle ways through actions and sayings that don’t feel rude due to how normalized they are.
“Things [I’ve experienced are] weird glances, being stared at and backhanded comments,” Leonard said.
The club’s recent founding allows the space and creativity to achieve its goals of making Sequoia a trans-accepting place.
“Neither Maverick or I have heard of a Transgender Student Union, and we might even be the first [to found one at a public high school],” Carpinelli said.
The club allows an opportunity to bring acknowledgement of trans students in the Sequoia community, as well as giving the trans student population a voice through the club.
“Once [the TSU has enough members], then we can start pushing for change and doing anything [the members] want to do,” math teacher and TSU advisor Neil Prakash said.