Murray State University social work students hosted a Trans Symposium at the Hopkinsville Regional Campus Thursday evening to share information about transgender issues. Mary Elaine Horn and Peggy Pittman-Munke speak with Tracy Ross on Sounds Good about the genesis of the symposium.
Pittman-Munke says social work students were concerned about a Tennessee bill that allowed counselors to refuse to see certain people based on religious values and decided to host a community awareness event about transgender issues. The Trans Symposium speakers included former Kentucky Supreme Court Justice Joanne Wheeler Bland, Jody Cofer Randall of Murray State University, Dylan Driskill, and Kristi Young of Heartland Cares.
Horn said the event was a way for the students to show unity in caring for all people. She says social workers are human service providers that distribute services based on need. “A key word is human, because we are all human. And we are all people with a heart,” Horn said.
