Lily McBeth
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Lily McBeth (born 1934) is an American transgender teacher from Eagleswood, New Jersey. She was born William McBeth and underwent sex reassignment surgery in 2005. She has three grown children from a previous marriage of 33 years. She is a retired sales executive and a former soldier. She says that she had always perceived herself as female and identified with other women. She says that for many years, she was afraid to address her transgenderism and felt that her first priority was keeping her family together for the sake of her children.
She worked as a substitute teacher at Eagleswood Elementary School prior to her sex reassignment and returned after surgery to resume her teaching. However, some in the community did not think she should have been allowed to return to teaching in the rural town of Eagleswood, near the Jersey Shore. There were fears that some of her students would not understand transgenderism. However, after listening to dozens of parents and citizens providing public input, the school district board voted 4 to 1 for her reinstatement. This decision was hailed and criticized by politicians, journalists, and activists around the world.
Although she continued to work as a substitute, she was evaluated for a full time teacher position in the Pineswood Regional School in New Jersey in the fall of 2006. The School Board appointed her to this full time position after a meeting at which they heard no negative comments; the vote to accept her was unanimous.
Her case attracted considerable media attention. She appeared in articles on CNN, NBC in Philadelphia, and other regional and national media outlets to explain her life in an apparent attempt to raise public awareness about transgenderism.
Considered by some as the "Rosa Parks" of the transgender movement in New Jersey, the Associated Press reported her as saying: "Look at me as a person: Am I qualified to teach? Yes. Do I have experience? Yes. Do I have a good report card from the schools? Yes. I have nothing to hide, and I'm proud of who I am."
"Make no mistake: Lily McBeth is one of the most important figures in New Jersey civil rights history over the past two decades," said Steven Goldstein, president of Garden State Equality, a gay and transgender rights group.
