CW: self harm; systematic oppression ALRIGHT FOLX: LET’S TALK ABOUT TRANS PPL AND COLLEGE. I think it is fair to say that college, at baseline, is a challenging undertaking. There is the application requirements and time managment of deadlines, of figuring out financial aid process and funding, and then the actual work of the classes you take for several years. Transgender people face disproportionate amounts of abuse, homelessness, addiction, depression and discrimination compared to the remainder of the U.S. population. Any one of those things is enough to sink a precariously balanced college life, but multiple experiences combined can make it near impossible. Being transgender can lead to a mountain of obstacles between the person and having a degree. I have first hand experience with this struggle. I’ve known since I was about 5 years old that I was neither male nor female. I tried communicating this to people close to me, and I was warned never to speak or think on it else I face punishment or violence. I was told for years that I was being stupid and didn’t know anything because of how I expressed my view of my existence. I learned to mask my identity to face fewer obstacles to surviving, but that increased depression and ideation of self-harm to the point of action. I was forced to the streets before I finished high school. I managed to apply and attend a semester of college thanks to high school counselors, but my mental distress over hiding myself constantly and being attacked when I didn’t gave me a nervous breakdown before the semester was up. I have spent years trying to heal myself while being under employed for meeting basic needs. It has been a lot of blood, sweat, tears, and perseverance to find a life where I am safely housed, fed, and employed. Yet, I have no extra to return to school, no credit for students loans. I am constantly repaying past debts (which allowed me opportunities to better myself) to be met with emergencies created by the world that require me to return to debt to survive, all the meanwhile balancing between masking where needed to survive and fighting for my authentic existence. So many trans people I’ve met and have heard about have faced the same or worse. Sometimes it feels like there is no way to escape the cycle of poverty and abuse. That’s why it is important we have protections for Trans people in society, where we can be safely housed and employed as we live authentically as ourselves. We need grants and scholarships for trans students to overcome the multiple challenges to financial stability.
