The little stick figures on the doors of public restrooms are an easy indicator for most people. It is supposed to come down to this: skirts are for girls and trousers are for boys. But for those who don't declare a gender, it's not so easy.

"Normally, people don't think about something as simple as getting up to use the public restroom -- I do," said Shawn Demmons, a transgender SF State student. "I had an experience where a manager at a restaurant actually came into the bathroom to ask for my ID. Another time, a woman screamed because I was in the restroom. It scared me so bad, I screamed and ran out too."

March 30 is marked as International Transgender Visibility Day. In order to commemorate this day, Demmons, a graduate student, created a presentation in the
Cesar Chavez Student Center. Demmons brought together a panel of guest speakers to discuss the discrimination people in the transgender community face on an everyday basis and focused on one issue that is basic for most people, the use of public restrooms.

Demmons says that it's sometimes easier to use the men's restroom because people stare way too much, which makes Demmons feel uncomfortable.

"When I leave this diverse Bay Area bubble, I have to deal with a lot more scrutiny," Demmons explains. "I want to raise awareness that people in the 'trans' community go through struggles for just about everything and I want to show that we're human beings with feelings who don't want to harm or offend anyone."

Demmons showcased a short film called "Law and Order in the Restrooms," documenting the abuse people in the transgender community face when using the restroom. Everything from getting beat up in the bathroom, to stares and insults are what someone who doesn't fit the norm of gender roles and gender stereotypes usually expects.

Theresa Sparks, a well-known transgender human rights activists and CEO of the adult store Good Vibrations, was part of the panel and gave a speech on how far the transgender community has come.

"This day of transgender awareness is truly touching because it wasn't long ago that we were trying our hardest not to be visible," Sparks explained. "It is amazing to see that this whole movement started off with a bunch of pissed of trans[gender] people fighting against the violent discriminations against us to a peaceful and positive day of highlighting our community."

Sparks gave a brief overview of the history of how the transgender community came into politics and were shown in a positive strong light.

"There is a lot of talk and speculation on whether or not the transgender community is part of the gay and lesbian community," Sparks said. "But not only are we a part of it and not only do we support our fellow brothers and sisters in the gay community, we have fought side by side with them since the beginning."

As of today, 40 percent of transgender students have felt unsafe at their schools, 45 percent have been verbally harassed, 26 percent have been physically harmed and 11 percent have been assaulted according to information distributed by the LGBT Center.

Demmons said that the event on campus was really meant to educate people on a brief part of what transgender people go through and that every little presentation like this gets people closer to fully accepting who they are.

"I wanted to learn more about the transgender community because you don't really hear too much about their struggles from their perspective," counseling student Alicia Lucas, 21, said. "I heard about the event through my counseling class and think it's really beneficial for people to learn about other people's lifestyles."