When I get dressed in the morning, I think about many things. The weather, my schedule, and my shameless inability to do laundry all occupy my mind and influence my choice of outfit. One thing that rarely crosses my mind, however, is my gender identity and how I am actively expressing it through what I wear. However, for many people whose gender identity or expression varies from our society’s limited ideas about women and men, how they present themselves is a much more loaded question. In America, only 15 states and the District of Columbia prohibit discrimination on the basis of gender identity or expression. What this means is that in the majority of the country, people whose gender identity or expression vary from the perceived “norm” can be denied housing, fired, or denied a job based on their gender presentation. Other states and jurisdictions, as well as the federal government, should extend legal protections to people of all gender identities.

Over winter break, I spent two weeks interning at the Transgender Law Center in San Francisco through Wesleyan’s Career Outlook program. There, while simultaneously becoming a filer extraordinaire, I learned much about the struggles faced by the transgender community, even in a state such as California, which has more legal protections for transgender people than most others. People who are transgender, which, as defined by the Transgender Law Center, means “all of the innumerable genders and forms of gender expression that fall within and outside of stereotypical gender norms,” can face discrimination at many points in their day to day lives. From simply trying to use a public restroom that matches their gender identity to struggles with employment, healthcare access, housing, and education, a lack of understanding and acceptance by the public can make people’s lives difficult.

The fact that people face these challenges over gender is ridiculous, as our societal definitions of what constitute “normal” gender roles have nothing to do with an individual’s capacity to perform a job or to be a responsible renter. Unfortunately, too many people never stop to think about the role of gender in their everyday lives, and how their narrow perceptions of it could be incorrect. Before I volunteered at the Transgender Law Center, I hadn’t thought much about gender in my life either. I’ve never considered myself to be particularly feminine, but I definitely present myself as society expects women to do. As I experience life from my position in the gender conforming majority, I am privileged because I don’t have to face discrimination or questioning. When I was exposed to a larger community of people whose gender expression varied from societal norms, I realized that my “normal” appearance could just as easily make me the odd one out. This highlighted how crucial it is that barriers relating to gender expression be eliminated, as this expression has no bearing on an individual’s capabilities.

One way that the United States could increase gender protections would be to finally pass the Employment Non-Discrimination Act (ENDA), which has been a proposed congressional bill since 1994, with protection for gender identity added in 2007. The bill, which would protect individuals against employment discrimination based on sexual orientation or gender identity, could improve the lives of many Americans. The bill has faced opposition in the past, both from conservatives and from supporters of the 1994 version of the bill who were concerned that the addition of gender identity would inhibit its passage. However, now with the support of President Obama, it may finally be time to make these necessary protections law. Though not everyone faces the challenges that gender non-conforming people deal with on a day-to-day basis, we can all be more conscious of the role gender plays in our lives, and more supportive of bills like ENDA through our choices in elected officials. Hopefully soon, my worries can shift away from discrimination, whether it’s against gender identity or otherwise, and onto whether or not I have any clean socks.