New washroom signage at Vancouver City Hall is being updated to state, "Trans people welcome." The new signage will be installed at other City-owned buildings in the coming months.
"Everyone has the right to safe and inclusive washroom facilities. This change is another step forward towards ensuring equality and inclusion for all," says City Manager Sadhu Johnston. "This updated signage aims to help trans*, gender variant and two-spirit individuals feel safer accessing the washroom facility they most identify with."
The City is committed to ensuring staff and citizens feel safe and welcome. Many trans*, gender variant and two-spirit individuals face discrimination and even barriers to basic forms of human needs.
Updating washroom signage on the City Hall campus is part of a larger City of Vancouver plan, Supporting Trans* Equality and an Inclusive Vancouver<http://vancouver.ca/files/cov/trans-gender-variant-and-two-spirit-inclusion-at-the-city-of-vancouver.pdf>. This plan includes a number of recommendations, approved by Council in July 2016, aimed at taking significant steps forward to create a safe and inclusive Vancouver for trans*, gender variant and two-spirit individuals.
An interdepartmental City staff team is overseeing the implementation of the recommendations.
Trans* (with an asterisk) is an inclusive umbrella term used to refer to communities and individuals with gender identities and/or expression not matching gender binary stereotypes.
