Montgomery County Council members unanimously approved a measure that outlaws discrimination against transgender people, despite the outrage of protesters who worried the measure would allow men access to women’s restrooms.
The legislation will “prohibit discrimination in housing, employment, public accommodations, cable television service and taxicab service on the basis of gender identity” and add gender identity discrimination to the lists of potential types of prejudice.
The measure, passed Tuesday, also says that there will be no change in how restroom access is determined, but that didn’t satisfy protesters such as Adol T. Owen-Williams II.
“I hope it’s on your conscience when little girls start showing up dead in public bathrooms,” Owen-Williams shouted at council members as they left the room.
About 25 protesters held signs that read “Gender ID Bill is LOO-NY” or “Safety.” Protesters said they wanted a bill that would specifically bar individuals with male genitalia from using female restrooms and locker rooms.
Michelle Turner, spokeswoman for local group Citizens for a Responsible Curriculum, said she hoped the council would “reconsider it, rewrite it and then allow a public hearing so more citizens here in Montgomery County have an option or an opportunity to say something about it and have their voices heard.”
The County Council held a little-noticed public hearing on the bill Oct. 2.
Debate intensified after Turner’s group ran radio ads warning that women could soon come face to face with men in public restrooms.
Protesters at Tuesday’s council meeting said they feared the bill would compromise privacy rights and give free rein to pedophiles and predators to troll women’s locker rooms and other facilities.
Jennifer Edwards, 51, a Rockville resident and transgender woman, said she was saddened but not surprisedby attempts to link transgender rights to crime.
“Because it has to do with sex and gender, you’re thrown into a category automatically,” Edwards said.
The bill passed by the Council allows the proprietors of private establishments and the operators of public facilities to continue to designate who can use which bathrooms in private locations.
Edwards said she uses female restrooms.
“Think about it … are you going to walk into a men’s restroom wearing a dress and hose?” Edwards said. “You’d get the snot knocked out of you.”
According to the National Gay and Lesbian Task Force, 13 states, the District of Columbia and 91 other local jurisdictions, including Baltimore, have enacted legislation that prohibits discrimination against transgender individuals.
