Section 2, Group A - Contemporary Connections: "3 Myths That Shape the Transgender Bathroom Debate" and LGBT Movements

Link: http://www.cnn.com/2017/03/07/health/transgender-bathroom-law-facts-myths/

In CNN’s article “3 Myths That Shape the Transgender Bathroom Debate,” the arguments used by those opposed to allowing transgender individuals to use the bathroom that correlates to their gender are analyzed and debunked. One argument used by dissenters is that predators can take advantage of transgender bathroom laws to enter women’s restrooms and sexually assault women and children. CNN disproves this argument by citing only a single incident in which a man undressed in a women’s locker room who may have taken advantage of such anti-discrimination laws. Otherwise, there seems to be virtually zero cases in which such laws have resulted in sexual assault, proving that those making such an argument are either woefully uninformed or purposely attempting to impede civil rights progress for the LGBTQ movement.

These unsubstantiated arguments against the LGBTQ community are not new; our class reading, “Milestones in the American Gay Rights Movement,” mentions that during the Cold War, thousands of gay individuals in military and government positions lost jobs because gay people “lack the emotional stability of normal persons” which means they “constitute security risks.” While such arguments seem ridiculous by today’s standards, those opposed to gay rights used such arguments to oppress gay people and strip them of their jobs and their rights.