Few things get me really pissed off, but when fear mongering trumps facts, my blood pressure goes up. So, here is the scoop- Baltimore County is considering a bill to protect trans persons from discrimination. As always, the homophobes who are fighting the bill (anti-gay haters who talk about men wearing dresses) refer to it as the Bathroom Bill, and ignore that such legislation cover discrimination in employment, housing and public accommodations. They raise the specter of attacks on women and children. But many many places already have these protections and there haven’t been ANY reported cases of problems. Zero!
Supporters of the legislation say places with transgender laws have never reported such incidents, and accuse opponents of using the bathroom issue as a distraction. The bill would add gender identity to existing county laws that prohibit discrimination in housing, workplaces, and public places.
So if Baltimore County does strip public restrooms and locker rooms as they are considering, they are essentially saying that discrimination is acceptable because Fear trumps facts. They may do this to try and compromise, but this is no compromise. It is a loss for equality; a loss for LGBTQ rights; and a win, only for the antigay haters.