The rights and equality of our LGBTQ+ community has always been something most of us don't think a lot about. Unless you are part of the LGBTQ+ community ,every day tasks ,we who are not part of the  community take for granted ,are over looked or not thought about. 

I was one who took for granted these tasks.  Not out of disrespect ,but because I was unaware , and uneducated. Last year my 14 year old son came out as Transgender. Since my son has became a member of the LGBTQ+ community, I have had first hand experience with the difficulties he experiences in his daily life. One major difficulty is the use of a public washroom. Washrooms are labelled Male or Female ... But if you are a transgender human , where do you fit in ? Most people Ive asked this question too has stated to simply use the washroom assigned to your gender. That's easy for us who were born in the proper bodies ,but not so easy for a transgender human who was born into the wrong body. This difficulty is not just experienced by Transgender humans , it is also experienced by Non-Binary, Gender Fluid, AGender, and many other members of the LGBTQ+ community. 

Kawartha Lakes area does not have adequate gender neutral washrooms to support our LGBTQ+ community. On several occasions ,I have driven my son to numerous locations looking for a public washroom for him to feel comfortable using. If my son uses a woman's washroom , he feels uncomfortable. If he uses a male washroom , he feels unsafe and threatened. 

My hope in writing this petition is to have gender neutral washrooms available in our community. Our LGBTQ+ community deserve to have peace of mind and they deserve to have this human need met.