Proposed Tennessee Law to Criminalize Trans Restroom Use

[Carolyn Marie]

Now here is a piece of legislation that begs to be defeated. Otherwise, those transfolk in Tennessee had better start carrying around a plastic bag and toilet paper if you don't want to be fined.

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/scottie-thomaston/odious-new-antitransgende_b_1201889.html

Carolyn Marie

[Guest CarolynM]

Social engineering if ever I saw one.

Cee

[Guest Mia J]

From the way I read this everyone in Tennessee better be carrying their birth certificate if they need to go to the john.

It also seems to ban parents from taking a baby or young child into a bathroom that does not match the child's sex. I can just see a baby crawling into the men's room to change his own diapers when out with his mom because she can't take him to the ladies.

This just shows how much we need laws for transgendered people on a national level.

Of course, on the other hand, It will help the unemployment problem when they have to hire 50,000 bathroom police to check the gender of anyone going into a restroom or dressing room. Hey maybe they could hire that out to the TSA........

Mia

[Guest Donna Jean]

.

Well, the great of Tenn. can go suck the chrome off a trailer hitch, for all I care.....

I'll be spending MY tourist dollars in other states....

Glad that I already saw Graceland....

Sorry, Elvis!

Dee Jay

[Guest Elizabeth K]

No panty checks in transsexuality - how will they know? Sounds like a good way to make some easy money in a lawsuit!

Lizzy

[VickySGV]

At last, job opportunities in the future!!

[Guest Amanda Whyte]

According to the Human Rights Campaign FaceBook post:

Tennessee State Senator Bo Watson withdrew the Senate version of a transphobic bathroom bill following a shockingly anti-trans rant from the bill’s House author, Rep. Richard Floyd. According to the Chattanooga Times Free Press, Watson said: “I understand Rep. Floyd’s passion about the issue, but we have more pressing issues before us that we need to focus our attention on and we don’t need to get sidetracked.”

[Guest John Chiv]

In political language, Watson saw Floyd's bill for the disaster it is and reprimanded him without saying how he feels about it. If bathroom checks are Rep. Floyd's passion and biggest concern, I feel sorry for his constituents who may need him to focus on issues like jobs, crime, housing, you know real stuff.

John

[JenniferB]

This is a Richard Floyd interview and why he created this bill.

http://www.newschann...&clipId=6634624

Jenny

[Guest Megan_Lynn]

Wow is this guy a major homo/transpobe....

[Guest Karen K]

I would welcome to good Senator to com'on down here to Texas and attempt to stop me from entering a womens dressing room or restroom. Bad career move, ya right, on his part. I would totally forget my femaninity and either woop his a**. Or consider this Senator, Texas is a right to carry state.

What a buffoon--- Depraved or perverted mind!? I can't think of any transwoman who wants to be in the mens room or dressing area next to this idiot! Would you?

Okay, *climbing down off my soapbox*

Laura Jane

[Guest eliza.d]

yeah he's a real idiot. hopefully, the trans/homo phobias of our elected officials will reach the attention of the media and higher up elected officials, like the supreme court. human and civil rights should be the most basic and necessary protection our elected officials provide to us as americans...what are we gonna have to do so that our voices are heard.

we are some of the most intelligent, talented, and diverse people anywhere. its time the government and media stop misunderstanding us and start protecting us. lord knows we pay enough taxes, why should our cause be swept aside?

i dont think bigoted fanatics should be elected, but somehow they still do.

im glad that the other politician swept that nut's transphobic gestapo-esque bathroom law aside. too bad they didnt sweep him out of office. they really should make hatemongering an impeachable offense.

oh well, we can only dream, right?

Eliza

[Guest Lacey Lynne]

Hey, there's a LOT of thinking this way in much of The American South, y'all. After 31 years in Florida (with 14 of them in backwoods areas where the thinking was EXACTLY LIKE THIS), I decided to leave to transition to one of the most transfriendly cities in America. Certainly, I miss the subtropical climate, but I do not miss this kind of idiocy, and it IS idiocy.

Those of you who can actually do so, try to move somewhere more progressive that places like that!

Peace Lacey

[Guest eliza.d]

san francisco here comes Eliza D.

[Guest Ney'ite]

We had a similar thing happen here in Maine, with an idiot "Bathroom Bill" proposed by an equal moron (in my opinion bless his soul), Ken Fredette (his name is public knowledge so I am not divulging private information). It was designed to allow businesses to police their own bathrooms, something they would NOT do for fear of losing customers, not to mention it targeted those who were not able to pass as their target gender. The bill was totally shot down.

Denny's here in this State was sued for doing that, and lost, as did other large chain stores.

These people worry about a trans person using their target gender bathroom who like nearly EVERYONE on the planet have one goal - use the bathroom as quick as possible and get out (trans and non-trans alike). I wonder who these people would worry more about: Someone who is trans using the bathroom while their child is in it, or a known pedophile using the bathroom while their child is in it?

[Guest eliza.d]

racial profiling is illegal, why isnt Gender Profiling?

we must have equal rights! our victory is a victory for everyone.

Eliza

[Guest Donna Jean]

.

Again......

Who will be the "Official Panty Checkers"?

Dee Jay

[Guest eliza.d]

very good point dee jay.

but for me, i am full time even though im beginning my transition. i know there are always those cunning folks that " make" me, but not everyone does. and im NEVER putting on ANY man clothes, not even for halloween. no matter how bad i have to go. actually, im donating all man things i still have to goodwill.

if states start passing these kind of laws, it could potentially cause me trouble, since im otr trucker and run all 48 states. im not going to use the mens room anywhere, thats too dangerous...and im a lady, i cant go in the parking lot.

if they start passing these laws, they might as well try to resegregate bathrooms.

maybe soon our great country will get out of the middle ages.

Eliza

[Guest GinaInside]

It is'nt really surprising such bills come up. There are many people who will never accept Trans-people, no matter what evidence exists to show this is not some kind of "choice" issue. The first anti-crossdressing "laws" came about in the 1800's, and there are still such laws, today. There are countries around the world today, that are busy working to squash LGBT freedom.

I think people are threatened by the concept of Transsexuality, because they fear going against what they have been told to believe. Even those who are not religious see being Trans as un-natural. This is because people are still pack animals, and all pack animals cull the weak, and our kind are seen as weak.

I believe we have a very long way to go. It may still be a century before people understand, and accept Trans-people. Not a very bright outlook, true, but there are still people who believe the Earth is flat...

[Guest kelise]

I just emailed the good representative and attached a few pictures (from Google) of the FTM guys who will be sharing the ladie's room, locker room and dressing room with his daughters and granddaughters. I'm sure you see where I'm going with this.

[Guest Kelly-087]

I just emailed the good representative and attached a few pictures (from Google) of the FTM guys who will be sharing the ladie's room, locker room and dressing room with his daughters and granddaughters. I'm sure you see where I'm going with this.

Kelise. You're awesome .

[Guest Elena]

Kelsie, that should be a nice treat for him!

If you check out his interview he is really only out to get mtf's, so opening his eyes to the flip side should prove a nice shock.

<3

Elena

[Guest musicalice]

@Kelise I was wondering about that, great idea

Surely everyone has to have a safe place to go to the loo?

-> which means with this law passed, we'd have to go to the unisex (you may not feel safe with me in the ladies, but I don't feel safe in the men's)

-> so all places would need at least one unisex loo

-> so instead of only 'men' going to the mens and 'women' going to the women's, you'd end up (in most places) with two unisex loos, one with urinals and one without, simply because business don't want to create a third loo. Wrong effect much?

Mind you, if he thinks we pose a danger to his supreme comfort, he probably thinks we don't deserve to defecate either.

[Guest kelise]

@Kelise I was wondering about that, great idea

Surely everyone has to have a safe place to go to the loo?

-> which means with this law passed, we'd have to go to the unisex (you may not feel safe with me in the ladies, but I don't feel safe in the men's)

-> so all places would need at least one unisex loo

-> so instead of only 'men' going to the mens and 'women' going to the women's, you'd end up (in most places) with two unisex loos, one with urinals and one without, simply because business don't want to create a third loo. Wrong effect much?

Mind you, if he thinks we pose a danger to his supreme comfort, he probably thinks we don't deserve to defecate either.

No, hun. You gotta understand how little regard for us the US has, especially people like this representative. There's no law guranteeing anyone a safe restroom. This bill makes no provision that anywhere should have to create any unisex bathrooms. He could care less how safe we are or feel, and openly says so. It doesn't matter how passable or non-passable we are. It doesn't matter if we've had surgery or not. It simply calls for anyone born with a penis to use the restroom labeled men, general population or otherwise, or else not use the restroom at all (and vice versa). If he truly had his way, transition of any kind would be banned and those of us who have transitioned would be rounded up and shot, or worse, although obviously he can't politically get away with that, so he's doing what he thinks he can get away with.

[Guest eliza.d]

i thought it was 2012, i guess it actually 1939 again.

welcome to the twilight zone.....

Eliza