Aimee Walker
A transgender teacher has explained why enforcing a trans athlete ban is harmful.
Bondono, who was awarded Michigan Teacher of the Year in the 2020/21 academic year, has called out the state’s legislation that plans to enforce a bill which would stop trans high school students playing sports.
In a clip that has been shared to Twitter, he called out the division it would cause.
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He explained: “I hope that my students leave my room knowing that there is no ‘us versus them’ divide between transgender and cisgender people and that we are all deserving of love and respect.
“I hope that my existence deepens their empathy. For my students who may be questioning their gender identity, I hope that my presence reassures them.”
Bondono then said that most of all, he wants his students to leave his classroom with the understanding that it’s okay to be transgender and that they can still lead the life they want.
However, Michigan’s anti-trans bill would be sending out the ‘opposite message’.
The teacher argued: “It tells transgender youth that in order to live authentically they may have to give up the things that they love, like a sport that brings them joy.
“It tells transgender youth that their feelings of isolation, of pain and of rejection may never go away. It tells those transgender youth that they may not be able to achieve a future where they’re accepted and loved for who they really are.
“If the school’s job is to welcome students into classrooms where they are respected, supported and loved – and I believe that it is – this bill, if passed, will no longer make that fully possible for our transgender students in Michigan.”
Following the post, Bondono was invited to speak out at the Senate Committee, according to Click On Detroit.
But Senator Lana Theis, who wants to introduce the anti-trans bill, left the meeting early before listening to a single trans person’s side of the story.
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