[Image: An egret, partially reflected in water, glides in for a landing.]

This time of year, many people travel by air to go on vacation and visit their families. I’ve never enjoyed traveling myself, and dislike flying in particular. My gender transition only exacerbated the nervousness I experience whenever I go to an airport. I’ve only flown once so far since changing my identification documents, and fortunately was not harassed or selected for additional screening.

But as today’s article in Everyday Feminism illustrates, many trans people are not so lucky. I’ve read countless stories about trans people setting off alarms for wearing binders or prostheses, and being outed and humiliated by TSA employees.

This situation is simply unacceptable. The burden should not be on trans people to disclose the configuration of our bodies and educate staffers who should already be receiving training on trans issues. This isn’t just a matter of “sensitivity” (as such training is often termed); outing trans people can put our health, jobs, and very lives at risk.

If we’re to reach a “transgender tipping point” that actually makes a difference in the lives of all trans people, as opposed to just celebrities on magazine covers, we need to address discrimination in all facets of life. That includes our transportation system.