In the last decade and more, there has never been an incident where a man dressed as a woman assaulted anyone in a women’s bathroom or changing room. That is not stopping the Tennessee General Assembly from showing off just how transphobic they are in that state. Representative Richard Floyd of Chattanooga and State Senator Bo Watson, also of Chattanooga, have introduced legislation that would make it a criminal offense for people “to use the restrooms designated for the sex other than the one listed on their birth certificates.”
This legislation is designed to harass trans people.
The problems with this legislation are manifest and multiple. To begin with, not all trans people are automatically visible. While the typical stereotype is of a very masculine looking guy in a dress, the reality is that most trans women look pretty female. In fact, most trans women are indistinguishable from cis-women. Then comes the other problem. There have been women who have been barred from using the women’s restrooms because they were too butch.
Another problem is, how would they enforce this law? Would they have men standing around demanding that women lift up their skirts to show off that they have a clit and labia and not a penis? That certainly won’t work for post-op trans women. The next problem for this bill is the fact that, while Tennessee bans trans women from getting their sex changed on their birth certificates, many states do not. Vermont recently passed legislation allowing trans people to change their birth certificates before the official surgery. So…what happens when some trans woman shows up with a copy of her birth certificate indicating that she is female, but looking under her skirt shows that she still has male parts?
The bill is designed to do two things. The first is to harass trans people. The second is to try and bring out the Fundamentalist vote. The Nashville Scene notes that “Legislative leaders have claimed they will stick to important issues this session for a change and prove Republicans are serious adults capable of governing responsibly. So much for that.”
The Tennessee Transgender Political Coalition issued this statement:
Bathroom Harassment Act is a New Low for Tennessee
The Second Session of the 107th Tennessee General Assembly convened on Tuesday, and it did not take long for the members to set the bar lower than ever before in introducing bad legislation.
Just a little over 48 hours ago, the Bathroom Harassment Act (SB 2282/HB 2279) was filed by two Hamilton County Republicans, Senator Bo Watson of Hixson and Representative Richard Floyd of Chattanooga.
The Bathroom Harassment Act restricts access to public restrooms and public dressing rooms designated by sex to members of that particular sex. Using the person’s birth certificate, a person would face a Class C Misdemeanor, with a fine of up to $50.
The Tennessee Transgender Political Coalition feels that while this bill is a direct attack on the rights of Tennessee’s transgender community, transgender people would not be the only people harassed under this bill should it become law. It would affect lots of other gender variant and gender non conforming people who do not necessarily identify as trans. Furthermore, it would criminalize plumbers and cleaning personnel who operate in restrooms the opposite of their birth gender.
The bill would also affect families who take their children with them into restrooms in shopping malls, restaurants, theaters, and sporting events. Are we now going to arrest the parents, or children, or both, for violating this new law?
Tennessee also has many people who visit the state to enjoy our many tourist sites, from Dollywood to Graceland, as well as to transfer at Tennessee airports in Memphis and Nashville. If any of them wish to use a restroom while they are in the state and they do not have their birth certificates with them to prove identity, are we now going to arrest them?
We are also curious to see how Senator Watson and Representative Floyd intend to set up this new Bathroom Identification bureacracy. Who will be responsible for checking everyone’s birth certificates? If a person does not carry their birth certificate with them, will they be denied access to a facility? And how do they intend to pay for this new Big Government agency in the bathroom stalls? Do they propose raising taxes, or will they seek to cut the budgets of superflous agencies like Department of Education or Department of Health? Does this mean that doctors, nurses, and teachers are less important than Bathroom stall monitors?
There are also serious Constitutional questions surrounding this bill, since the Fourth Amendment protects persons “from unreasonable searches and seizures.”
While there have been many attempts to scare people about transgender people using bathrooms, including a well circulated video previously used in anti-transgender campaigns in Florida and Michigan, the only documented incidents all show the transgender person as the victims, not the perpatrators of the abuse. The April 2011 beating of Chrissy Lee Polis at a Baltimore McDonald’s led to charges of Hate Crimes in Maryland against the two women who beat Ms. Polis. In Tennessee, they would probably be hired as supervisors in the new Tennessee Bathroom Security Agency.
We feel this bill is the latest in a growing string of embarrassing bills in Tennessee.
We urge all of you to contact Senator Watson (615-741-3227 or sen.bo.watson@capitol.tn.gov) and Representative Floyd (615-741-2746 or rep.richard.floyd@capitol.tn.gov) and express your opposition to the Bathroom Harassment Act and ask them to withdraw it immediately.
Anonymous
