(Dis)ordered Spaces? Managing the Competing Rights of Children in the Gendered Space of the School Toilet

Sarah Richards and Jessica Clark*

Received: September 21, 2018;   Published: September 26, 2018

DOI: 10.32474/OAJRSD.2018.01.000122

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Abstract

Rights are often perceived as unproblematic and normative, perhaps particularly in childhood where rights are primarily positioned as protective and participatory. However, in a landscape where the rights of trans* and gender non-conforming are an increasing focus, rights are once again revealed as being contested, controversial and in-conflict. While trans* identities are constructed by some as being normative, simply part of the continuum of gender identity, for others, trans* is perceived as ‘disorder’ both biologically and socially [1]. Here, we take the space of the toilet and its binary structure, as emblematic of wider “mechanisms of gender regulation” [2]. We consider the challenges faced by schools (and other social institutions) in managing toilet spaces and the competing and contested rights of those who lay claim to them.

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