The big news in my world is that a special session of the Texas legislature started this week, and transgender folks are on the agenda.

Again.

FIVE DAYS after a horrific flooding disaster that claimed the lives of more than 130 people, Governor Abbott decided that where trans people go to the bathroom was important enough to talk about in a 30-day session that instead should be focused solely on disaster preparation, communications, and recovery.

​House Bill 32 and Senate Bill 7 are "bathroom bills" that would require individuals to use bathrooms and locker rooms in public schools and government buildings based on their sex assigned at birth. The bill also includes provisions affecting correctional facilities and shelters.

Why on earth do people care where transgender people pee?

Supporters of these kinds of laws and policies argue that they're necessary to protect the safety and privacy of women and girls (note that these folks don't seem to be concerned about who goes into the men's room).

But WE know that these laws and policies ...

• Ignore the fact that trans women are women
• Are designed to humiliate and degrade trans folks
• Perpetuate the myth that trans women are men in women's clothing
• Restrict the public movements of transgender people
• Open the door for invasive gender checks in public restrooms
• Reinforce narrow expectations of what a woman should look like
• Take away the freedom of everyone to pee without having to prove their gender
• ​Are associated with elevated rates of sexual assault against transgender kids​
• ​Don't make anyone any safer​
• Are yet another instance of government interference in private lives
• Are a solution without a problem

If this kind of legislation or policy is introduced where you live, call your elected officials and tell them they should vote against bathroom bills and policies for all the reasons above.

Mandy Giles​
Founder, Parents of Trans Youth​

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