Learners at 6 Florida universities protest the sharing of trans students’ wellness knowledge : NPR

Recently, students at six Florida universities came together in solidarity to show their support to protect the wellness knowledge of transgender students. This movement was sparked by the proposed regulations that determined that public universities in Florida must disclose “all mental health, psychological, and counseling records regarding gender identity issues” among other personal information to other people, faculty members and students, even if the individual has not granted their consent.

The proposal came following Florida’s legislation that bans transgender athletes from playing sports together according to the assigned sex on their birth certificate. Furthermore, the requirement of revealing such information by the universities could have panicked the transgender community due to the possible backlash and discrimination.

In light of the proposal, many private organizations and student organizations have come forth in criticism of the discriminatory regulations, with over 1,000 medical professionals from the state of Florida showing opposition to the bill in an open letter. Among them are the Medical Student Leadership and Advocacy Council (MSLAC), an organization of medical and health profession students from the University of Miami, University of Central Florida, University of Florida, University of South Florida, Florida International University, and Florida State University.

In an open letter to the Florida Board of Education they condemned the proposal, claiming that it violated the implicit trust that all students should be awarded, thereby disenfranchising transgender students who do not wish to broadcast their findings to other faculty members, faculty, or students. In the letter MSLAC stated that “All students should feel safe to share their unique stories with appropriate providers and be able to entrust the counselor to help guide them and protect their identity.”

The board of education has not announced a decision yet and the fate of the proposed regulations remain to be seen. However, the students of these six universities have come together to protest the sharing of trans students’ wellness knowledge, demonstrating the importance and power of solidarity and national strength in advocacy.

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