STUDENT SHOUT: Attitudes towards sexual identity need to change

Student Shout is a weekly column by journalism students at Highbury College. Here, Joe Stack talks about an issue close to his heart.
Joe Stack thinks attitudes need to changeJoe Stack thinks attitudes need to change
Joe Stack thinks attitudes need to change

There has been an awful lot of talk in the media lately of self-identification, individuality and sexuality.

It predominantly surrounds transgender members of our society and the way in which they choose to live their lives.

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There have been a few cases of gender-neutral school uniforms popping up in the news, from department stores such as John Lewis.

I’m not calling for a boycott of such shops, but I feel I need to address the fact that it is not the uniforms and classrooms that need to change, but the attitudes.

If neutralising uniforms will help the issue, why don’t we all wear grey onesies, shave our heads and refer to each other by our birth date rather than our names?

That will help sort this all out, right?

Of course not, this isn’t some Orwellian nightmare we are living in, but 2017.

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We are a progressive, forward-looking generation and should behave as such.

I have been finding the back and forth of arguments from people who do not agree, to be immensely interesting.

To quash any reasoning behind why someone may be anti-trans, I have devised a scientific formula which should lead anyone with doubts towards the answer:

1) Is someone you know transgender? If yes, move onto question two.

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2) Does it affect you in any way? If yes, move onto question three.

3) Are you fibbing? If no, visit Specsavers.

Fun and games aside, we mustn’t forget that homosexuality was only decriminalised 50 years ago, and as a country we still have a long way to go before we fully acknowledge equality and allow people to be who they want to be.

Besides, diversity is a great thing, and I for one would wholeheartedly prefer to live in a society that, from a distance, looks like a fruit salad rather than porridge.