Transgender women will not be able to operate women’s restrooms in parts of the U.S. Capitol intricate, House Speaker Mike Johnson said Wednesday, after some House Republicans targeted the first openly transgender person to win election to Congress.
Johnson’s three-sentence statement said public same-sex facilities could only be used by “persons of their biological sex.” It does not mention how the directive will be enforced.
“All same-sex spaces in the Capitol and House office buildings — such as restrooms, locker rooms and locker rooms — are reserved for people of their biological sex,” said Johnson, a Republican from Louisiana.
“It is important to note that each member office has its own private restroom and unisex restrooms are available throughout the Capitol. “Women deserve a women-only space,” he said, emphasizing his opposition to identifying transgender women based on their gender identity.
Most House Democrats, including the leadership, did not immediately respond, but Rep. Mark Pocan questioned how enforcement of the order would be monitored.
– Will the sergeant at arms send officers to the bathrooms? Pocan, a Democrat from Wisconsin, asked in a statement to States Newsroom. “Will everyone who works on Capitol Hill be required to carry a birth certificate or undergo genetic testing? This policy will not protect anyone, but it will open the door to rampant abuse, harassment and discrimination at the Capitol.”
Member of Parliament from Delaware
The order is a response to this month’s election of Republican-elect Sarah McBride, a Democrat from Delaware who will become the first openly transgender member of Congress.
As Congress returned to Washington this week, a vocal Hi The House Republican Conference objected to McBride’s gender identity and asked Johnson to restrict her operate of the bathroom.
Nancy Mace of South Carolina introduced a resolution on Monday with wording similar to Johnson’s order. She made it clear social media posts AND interviews was points the gun at McBride.
“This is someone who is at risk of entering women’s private spaces,” Mace said Tuesday night on Fox News. “I am a survivor of rape, sexual violence and harassment, and I know how vulnerable women are in places where we believe we have a right to privacy.”
Although trans rights opponents often argue that allowing trans women access to women’s bathrooms puts cis women at risk, there is no evidence to suggest that such access increases the incidence of sexual assault.
AND Harvard University 2019 study found that banning transgender teens from bathrooms consistent with their gender identity increases the likelihood of sexual assault against trans people.
McBride doesn’t agree, but he will
In a statement Wednesday, McBride said she would comply with the order even though she disagrees with it.
The statement continued McBride’s message on the issue, which reflected House Republicans’ misguided focus on wedge issues that have no significant impact on people’s lives.
“I’m not here to argue about bathrooms. “I am here to fight for the people of Delaware and reduce the costs for families,” she wrote. “This attempt to distract from the real problems facing this country has not distracted me over the last few days.”
As the chaos at the Capitol on Tuesday drew attention, Democrats in the House of Representatives apparently with McBride’s involvement, he also framed it as a distraction.
In miniature Thread X on Monday, McBride called the Republican Party’s efforts a “gross distraction from the fact that they have no real solutions to the problems Americans face” and said she would continue to focus on “making the American Dream more affordable and accessible.” .
House Democratic Leader Hakeem Jeffries, a Democrat from New York, said in brief comments at Tuesday’s news conference that Republicans were trying to “bully” McBride.
Memorial Day
In a statement, former Houston Mayor Annise Parker, who heads the LGBTQ+ advocacy group Victory Institute, called Johnson’s order and Mace’s resolution “bigoted and transphobic politics on Capitol Hill” and noted that Wednesday was Transgender Day of Remembrance.
“Announcing ill-conceived anti-transgender policies, on Transgender Remembrance Day no less, not only creates more distraction and division, but is a harmful ploy with real consequences,” she said. “This policy will harm many dedicated Capitol Hill employees and is short-lived and dangerous.”
Some Democrats posted messages expressing support for Transgender Day of Remembrance that alluded to discrimination in the halls of Congress.
A thread opposing the separate bill on the Equality X Club account stated that Republicans are “focused on attacking the queer community.”
“Their obsession with performative stunts rather than real solutions harms Americans and benefits no one” – one post To read.
Last updated at 16:09, November 20, 2024
