On Apr. 24 at 9 p.m., the highly-anticipated Bruce Jenner interview, led by Diane Sawyer, aired on ABC. What was said in that interview took social media, news sources and the Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender and Queer (LGBTQ) community by storm. Bruce Jenner, the patriarch of the Kardashian-Jenner family, came out, after months of speculation, as a woman.

“My brain is much more female than it is male. But, that’s what my soul is,” Jenner said.

Each member of the Kardashian-Jenner clan is a superstar, and one of them coming out as transgender opens many people’s eyes to the issue.

According to transgenderlaw.org, approximately 2-5 percent of the U.S. population consider themselves transgender or struggle with other forms of gender identity. The statistic is shocking for how little people acknowledge their current issues, the violence and the discrimination they face for being who they are.

Eighty-three percent of people transitioning from male to female reported verbal abuse for their gender transition, and 37 percent of those transitioning from male to female experienced physical violence as well.

Violence and hatred is unfortunately only the beginning of some of the struggles transgender people face regularly. Things as small as pronoun usage and going to the bathroom are critical to someone who identifies as transgender or struggle with gender identity. Calling someone by something other than their preferred pronoun can lead to serious confidence loss for them. If you don’t know the preferred pronoun, be free to ask. Asking shows that you acknowledge their feelings and wouldn’t like to hurt their self-esteem.

Another critical thing, and something that’s currently a very hot topic in the news, is the debate over a transgender person using the restroom of the gender that they aren’t biologically. Some people complain about feeling uncomfortable having to share a bathroom with someone who is technically the opposite gender. The debate focuses on whether people should use the bathroom with the gender they identify with, or the gender they were born as. To that, I say, if you really care that much about the genitals of the person in the stall next to you, you have some issues you have to sort out yourself.

Gay rights have been heavily talked about recently due to the upcoming Supreme Court ruling and also with the current “Right to Believe” campaign in Indiana. I recognize that many people do not, and may never, agree with how members of the LGBTQ community lead their lives. As people under the laws of our wonderful country, we’re all entitled to our own opinions. Though, we must realize, there is a fine line between spreading our beliefs and spreading hatred. Whatever opinion you have of the gay rights movement, make sure you choose your words carefully, remembering that we are all just striving for peace.

As the transgender community finally gets their well-needed recognition for their current issues, I am left with but one question: Why did we wait for Bruce Jenner to bring these issues to light?