Landmark Transgender Case Against US Army

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**jasper76**

'Transgender federal employee wins historic discrimination case'
by Emily Wax-Thibodeaux - 10/23/14 (http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/federal-eye/wp/2014/10/23/transgender-federal-employee-wins-historic-discrimination-case/)

The U.S. Office of Special Counsel on Thursday announced a landmark determination that the Department of the Army engaged in “frequent, pervasive and humiliating,” gender-identity discrimination against Tamara Lusardi, a veteran and civilian Army software specialist who transitioned from male to female.

Lusardi was working in the U.S. Army Aviation and Missile Research, Development and Engineering Center (“AMRDEC”) in Redstone, Ala., when she transitioned from male to female in 2010. During that time, the Army improperly restricted her restroom usage, referred to her with male pronouns and by her birth name and stopped giving her work, the OSC said in a report released Thursday.

Tamara Lusardi was discriminated against in her civilian job with the Department of the Army, OSC said. (Photo courtesy of Tamara Lusardi) In a telephone interview from Alabama, Lusardi, 49, who served in the Army from 1986 to 1993, including in Desert Storm, said she was called “sir” and “it” by co-workers and management after she legally changed her name, driver’s license and security clearance and began dressing as a woman.

Lusardi was also required to use a single-user, gender-neutral restroom, out of concerns that other employees might feel “uncomfortable” sharing a restroom with her.

The OSC, a federal investigative and prosecutorial agency, said that coworker preferences alone “cannot justify discriminatory working conditions,” since it could reinforce the very stereotypes and biases that nondiscrimination laws are intended to protect against. According to the report, Lusardi should be able to use bathrooms designated for her gender identity.

The case is part of a broader push by the federal government and the OSC to protect lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender employees in the government.

In July, Obama signed an executive order banning workplace discrimination against millions of lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender employees of federal contractors and the federal government. The executive order prohibits firing or harassment of federal contractors based on sexual orientation or gender identity, and it bans discrimination against transgender employees of the federal government.

In a recent study by the National Center for Transgender Equality and the National LGBTQ Task Force, 90 percent of transgender individuals report mistreatment or discrimination in the workplace, forcing many to hide their gender identity.

AdvertisementDiscrimination forces many transgender individuals into extreme poverty, according to Sasha Buchert, staff attorney at the Transgender Law Center. They experience double the rate of unemployment, twice the rate of homelessness, and 85 percent more incarcerations compared to those who are employed, the study found.

Lusardi said she was unable to sleep because she was frozen out of work and told to stop speaking to co-workers about her transition.

“By then I was legally female and recognized by Social Security and Homeland Security,” she said. “I felt like it was unfair. But it was clear it was a condition of employment at that time.”

Lusardi grew up in an Air Force family and said she has long been proud of the work she does protecting troops in the field.

“I really care about my job, and I really wanted to be professional,” she said. “But people were saying, ‘Is it Todd or Tamara, I don’t know,’ and smirking at me, even after I had sent an e-mail explaining my transition. I just wanted to crawl under the table.”

Lusardi and the California-based Transgender Law Center filed a complaint to the OSC, which began investigating the case in 2012.

Activists say they are encouraged by recent legal victories for transgender individuals who lost jobs, and by positive stories about transgender characters on TV shows such as “Orange is the New Black” and “Transparent.” But there are still 32 states where firing workers for being transgender is still legal, said the law center said.

The OSC report noted that the restroom restriction “had the effect of isolating and segregating” Lusardi from other female employees, “serv[ing] as a constant reminder that she was deprived of equal status, respect, and dignity in the workplace.”

AdvertisementThe OSC investigation found no evidence that Lusardi’s gender transition had a discernible or detrimental impact on her or other employees’ work performance.

In response, the Army agreed to provide training to correct and prevent future discrimination, the OSC said. It also now permits Lusardi to use the restroom associated with her gender identity.

The Army did not respond to further requests for comment, but it agreed to the OSC’s recommendation to provide workplace diversity and sensitivity training, with a specific focus on lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender issues.

“I applaud Ms. Lusardi for standing up not only for her rights, but for those of all federal employees,” said Special Counsel Carolyn Lerner. “The Army deserves credit for seeking to right the wrongs that Ms. Lusardi faced and for creating a more welcoming environment for its LGBT employees.”

Lusardi said she is busier at work these days, with the Army giving her back some of her workload since April.

“We have served our country in silence,” she said of transgender federal employees. “I hope my case and this decision will help other transgender people feel safe enough to bring their full authentic selves to work. This report makes clear that we don’t have to put up with being mistreated on the job just because of who we are.”

**timetowaste85**

She won? Good. Really, that's all that needs to be said.

**DarkTraveler777**

Good for Ms. Lusardi, but what an absolute nightmare to deal with; especially while transitioning. Once a person transitions there is absolutely no reason to refer to that person as an "it" or use pronouns associated with their former sex. That is so juvenile it is sickening to read about other adults behaving in such a manner. I really feel for people in Lusardi's situation and hope more judgments like in this case will help reduce the instances of harassment that are so common for members of the trans community.

**Captain Fantastic**

Army software specialist

Rule #1. Don't post like this

**Hordini**

Captain Fantastic wrote:
Army software specialist

stopped reading right there.

Maybe you should have kept reading. It doesn't say what she did while she was in the Army, just what she did as a civilian employee. It does say she was in the army from '86 to '93 and served in Desert Storm.

And the rest of your post, which was thankfully deleted, was disgusting.

**Sasori**

What was done was pretty terrible here.

The Special Consul made the right call here.

**Steve steveson**

It's just disappointing that in this day and age this is a "landmark case".

Also, this brings to light, why the hell do we even still have mens and womens bathrooms? Personally I don't see why we can't just have bathrooms with stalls. Large parts of Europe seem to manage fine with them (although it would mean men putting up with long lines and the mess that women make.)

**motyak**

I'm pretty sure its the lines.

**KingCracker**

timetowaste85 wrote:
She won? Good. Really, that's all that needs to be said.

Agreed

**Deadshot**

DarkTraveler777 wrote:
Good for Ms. Lusardi, but what an absolute nightmare to deal with; especially while transitioning. Once a person transitions there is absolutely no reason to refer to that person as an "it" or use pronouns associated with their former sex. That is so juvenile it is sickening to read about other adults behaving in such a manner. I really feel for people in Lusardi's situation and hope more judgments like in this case will help reduce the instances of harassment that are so common for members of the trans community.

I knew someone who trasitioned. Its fething confusing. One day she announces that you must now must refer to her as he, and by the male version of her name. Its fething strange and hard to adapt to. Especially when outwardly they haven't changed. You honestly don't have a clue whether to say he, she or they or even it because you aren't even sure what they are anymore.
Its doubly confusing when they then later transition back

.

As for the toilet thing I could understand. If you were a woman and a person walks in. Looks like a man, you've always known them as a man. They claim they are now a woman. Bit confusing. If I were that woman I'd be uncomfortable. And vice versa if I was a woman-turned-man having to go into an all male bathroom I wouldn't feel exactly comfortable or safe for that matter.
Furthermore, what's to stop a regular man walking into a female bathroom, supposedly transgendered, to perve on the women? Its a complicated issue.

**DarkTraveler777**

Deadshot wrote:
DarkTraveler777 wrote:
Good for Ms. Lusardi, but what an absolute nightmare to deal with; especially while transitioning. Once a person transitions there is absolutely no reason to refer to that person as an "it" or use pronouns associated with their former sex. That is so juvenile it is sickening to read about other adults behaving in such a manner. I really feel for people in Lusardi's situation and hope more judgments like in this case will help reduce the instances of harassment that are so common for members of the trans community.

I knew someone who trasitioned. Its fething confusing. One day she announces that you must now must refer to her as he, and by the male version of her name. Its fething strange and hard to adapt to. Especially when outwardly they haven't changed. You honestly don't have a clue whether to say he, she or they or even it because you aren't even sure what they are anymore.
Its doubly confusing when they then later transition back .

As for the toilet thing I could understand. If you were a woman and a person walks in. Looks like a man, you've always known them as a man. They claim they are now a woman. Bit confusing. If I were that woman I'd be uncomfortable. And vice versa if I was a woman-turned-man having to go into an all male bathroom I wouldn't feel exactly comfortable or safe for that matter.
Furthermore, what's to stop a regular man walking into a female bathroom, supposedly transgendered, to perve on the women? Its a complicated issue.

Yes, transitioning is a difficult time for everyone involved but at no point should one person ever refer to another person as "it" because by doing so the speaker is robbing the other person of their humanity. And the article clearly states that Ms. Lusardi was referred to as "it" and "sir" after she legally changed her name, drivers license and security clearance. So, is that confusion on her co-workers part or pure bigotry?

Was this person you knew transitioning a close acquaintance? I ask only because I fail to understand your confusion regarding pronouns. If the person explained that they were transitioning I would think that you would use their preferred pronoun out of courtesy regardless of where they were in their transition physically. If the person transitioning isn't sure which pronoun to use I am further curious about what sort of treatment they were receiving for their gender dysphoria.

As for your points about the bathroom, from everything that I have read on the matter it doesn't work that way. When you transition you go through a heavy amount of psychological treatment before you are legally able to change your listed sex on official documents. There is also a period of living as the opposite sex which often includes cosmetic changes, so your hypothetical of a man walking into a women's room claiming to be a woman seems unlikely and more of a strawman situation than anything else.

**d-usa**

Deadshot wrote:
DarkTraveler777 wrote:
Good for Ms. Lusardi, but what an absolute nightmare to deal with; especially while transitioning. Once a person transitions there is absolutely no reason to refer to that person as an "it" or use pronouns associated with their former sex. That is so juvenile it is sickening to read about other adults behaving in such a manner. I really feel for people in Lusardi's situation and hope more judgments like in this case will help reduce the instances of harassment that are so common for members of the trans community.

I knew someone who trasitioned. Its fething confusing. One day she announces that you must now must refer to her as he, and by the male version of her name. Its fething strange and hard to adapt to. Especially when outwardly they haven't changed. You honestly don't have a clue whether to say he, she or they or even it because you aren't even sure what they are anymore.
Its doubly confusing when they then later transition back .
.

You refer to him as he since you already know what they are, since he told you.

**Deadshot**

Not a close acquaintance. A friend of my girlfriend (recently turned ex). But it is extremely confusing. Your brain looks at them and says "Stephanie" (not their real name, it was irish and I can't spell it) and "she" but they want to be known as "Stephen" and "he." Your brain's instinctive and concious information feths up your head. Seriously, if it were your sister or your mum or something, how hard would it be to suddenly have to start saying that they are your brother or your second dad? And at that, would you now not be uncomfortable/worried for their safety if they started using the male restroom or changing rooms? Safety aspect more from the other people in the room, who you don't know what they are capable of.

There are cosmetics yes. But again in this hypthetical, a female restroom has only cubicles. What's to stop some random guy off the street walking in, fake ID he got for £30 if need be, claims he's legally a woman. Perves. Then what? Sexual harassment and then legal cases and we have a very large can of worms.

I'm not advocating the woman in this case being treated badly, I'm just saying you have to see it from the perspective of her colleagues. I've been in their position so if it is genuine confusion on the pronouns and a matter of safety/uncomfortableness regarding the toilet thing, I can somewhat understand and would hope that rather than bang it into court, they all give it time to settle in and adjust. If it's genuine bigotry feth 'em, take them to court.

**dogma**

DarkTraveler777 wrote:
Good for Ms. Lusardi, but what an absolute nightmare to deal with; especially while transitioning. Once a person transitions there is absolutely no reason to refer to that person as an "it" or use pronouns associated with their former sex.

Using the word "it" is wholly inappropriate, but I can understand continuing to use the pronouns associated with the person's former sex out of habituation if you happen to be familiar with that person. Obviously people should do their best to correct this behavior, but they're probably going to slip up at first without any malicious intent.

Steve steveson wrote:

Also, this brings to light, why the hell do we even still have mens and womens bathrooms? Personally I don't see why we can't just have bathrooms with stalls. Large parts of Europe seem to manage fine with them (although it would mean men putting up with long lines and the mess that women make.)

Lots of people feel uncomfortable using a bathroom in the presence of members of the opposite sex, regardless of their sexual orientation. Some of that is cultural, as heterosexual men and women in the US often use bar and restaurant bathrooms as a refuge, but a lot of it is not wanting to witness the gross things people you find attractive do in there.

**Ensis Ferrae**

I know that finding suitable work is pretty tough, but wouldn't it simply make more sense for someone making the transition from male to female, or female to male to "simply" get another job elsewhere and interview and be hired as their currently identified self?

I'm not saying that the DA was right (it wasn't), or that this case didn't have the right outcome (because it did), just that if you have one "life" that you are completely changing, it seems to me to make more sense that you'd want to change your employment as well (at least for a while).

**DarkTraveler777**

dogma wrote:
DarkTraveler777 wrote:
Good for Ms. Lusardi, but what an absolute nightmare to deal with; especially while transitioning. Once a person transitions there is absolutely no reason to refer to that person as an "it" or use pronouns associated with their former sex.

Using the word "it" is wholly inappropriate, but I can understand continuing to use the pronouns associated with the person's former sex out of habituation if you happen to be familiar with that person. Obviously people should do their best to correct this behavior, but they're probably going to slip up at first without any malicious intent.

Slips are bound to happen, but the OP's story didn't indicate that the slips Ms. Lusardi experienced from her co-workers were accidental or tapered off with time. The behavior she experienced appears to be have been deliberate.