Support for LGBTQ+ chemists must include addressing their basic needs

Access to a safe bathroom is a basic necessity in the workplace, schools, and other public spaces. Yet transgender, nonbinary, and gender-nonconforming (transGNC) folks lack access to safe and comfortable bathrooms. We both have firsthand experience with how this has affected us at professional events.

R. Lee Penn (they/them pronouns) had to make the decision to miss a talk at the American Chemical Society Fall meeting this year after attending an earlier coffee hour with colleagues (ACS publishes C&EN but is not involved in editorial decisions). Why? Because there was only one gender-neutral bathroom for the entire Colorado Convention Center. RLP used their phone’s tracker to count steps for the round trip from their session to the bathroom, and it was about 1,200 steps—nearly a kilometer of walking, which took about 10 min! When RLP arrived, they had to wait, as the bathroom was occupied. In all, it was a 20 min trip just to use the bathroom.

Argo Farlin (they/them pronouns) had a similar experience at a professional conference held at the Minneapolis Convention Center, where there were only two gender-neutral restrooms. Both restrooms required a key code for use, which added an additional barrier. At the first coffee break, they decided to try to use the restroom. But when AF found a security officer and asked for the code during the first coffee break, the officer did not know it. Nor did the second person whom AF was sent to find. After that second person radioed someone who knew the code, both restrooms were occupied. AF gave up. The energy-and-time barrier was too high.

Gender-neutral bathrooms signal to transGNC individuals that they are welcome and provide reassurance of a safe space. Their presence shows that planners considered the needs of transGNC people. Centrally locating these restrooms improves access and helps normalize transGNC identities.

On the search for the gender-neutral toilet in Denver this August, RLP passed numerous multiuser, gendered bathrooms, but they did not feel comfortable using them.

TransGNC individuals can encounter denial of access and even physical and verbal harassment when using single-gender bathrooms. Some states enforce laws that allow access to only the bathroom matching one’s sex assigned at birth. Both coauthors have personally experienced challenges with bathroom access beyond the stories shared.

TransGNC people often fear mistreatment, bathroom policing, or both. Many avoid bathrooms altogether, which puts their health and well-being at risk and compromises their ability to fully participate in professional activities.

The US Department of Labor’s Occupational Safety and Health Administration has published a guide on best practices for restroom access for transgender workers (OSHA 3795-2015). It identifies both single-occupant and multiuser, gender-neutral options as potential solutions. Single-occupant, gender-neutral bathrooms accessible under the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) and “family” bathrooms are often not adequate because of limited availability. This limitation sets up a competition among people with one or more marginalized identities. We advocate for multiple-occupant, gender-neutral bathrooms with ADA-accessible and full-privacy stalls with floor-to-ceiling doors, with both urinals and stools. Expanding access to safe and accessible gender-neutral bathrooms should be prioritized in professional, recreational, commercial, and educational environments.

A short-term solution in spaces without adequate gender-neutral bathroom access is to reassign a multiuser, single-gender bathroom to a gender-neutral one. This can be accomplished by simply affixing a temporary sign to the selected bathroom. This restroom should be centrally located and omit urinals not contained in stalls, as those lack adequate privacy for a multiple-occupant, gender-neutral bathroom.

Indeed, at ACS Fall 2019 in San Diego, a centrally located women’s bathroom was reassigned as a multiuser, gender-neutral bathroom. RLP appreciated this greatly and never had to wait to access a stall. Many people welcome multiple-occupant, gender-neutral bathrooms. Single-gender bathrooms remain widely available for those who feel uncomfortable using multiple-stall, gender-neutral bathrooms.

Longer term, scientific societies like ACS should schedule meetings only in locations with adequate bathroom facilities for all attendees and avoid locations where individuals are required by law to use the bathroom consistent with their sex assigned at birth. Importantly, organizers should avoid locations with any kind of anti-trans laws in place (C&EN, June 19/26, 2023, page 25). The open display of LGBTQ+ pride flags and related activities are not enough. Societies need to address the basic needs of attendees. All should feel safe both at conference events and in the areas surrounding those events.

R. Lee Penn (left) is a professor of chemistry and Institute on the Environment resident fellow at the University of Minnesota Twin Cities, where they research geochemistry, environmental and green chemistry, and nanoparticles.

Argo Farlin (right) is a PhD candidate in Penn’s laboratory, where they work on nanoparticle reactivity.

Do you have a story you want to share with the chemistry community? Send a submission of about 800 words to cenopinion@acs.org.