Just when you thought a debate about where transgender people can pee couldn't get any weirder, an Alabama lawmaker has taken this whole thing to a new level.
Last week, Alabama Sen. Phil Williams, a Republican from Rainbow City, proposed a bill that would let trans people use unisex bathrooms — overseen by an attendant staffed at the door of every unisex facility.
Seriously. The Times Daily reported that the bill is supposed to ensure "the privacy of each individual" by providing three options for bathrooms and locker rooms:
∙ restroom, bathroom or changing facilities that are designed to be used by one person at a time.
∙ restroom, bathroom or changing facilities that are designed to be used by multiple persons of the same biological gender.
∙ restroom, bathroom or changing facilities that are designed to be used by multiple persons at once, irrespective of their gender, that are "staffed by an attendant stationed at the door of each restroom to monitor the appropriate use of the restroom and answer any questions or concerns posed by users."
So to supposedly protect people's privacy, a lawmaker is asking to put attendants at bathroom doors.
It's unclear whether this stands any chance of passing. But it is a remarkable piece of legislation nonetheless, demonstrating another example of what the New York Times has called "bathroom hysteria."
A reminder that this is all based on a myth: Supporters of anti-trans measures like North Carolina's, which began this whole national debate, argue that if trans people are allowed to use the bathroom that aligns with their gender identity, men will disguise themselves as women to sneak into women's bathrooms and assault or harass women. But investigations have found that states and schools with trans-friendly policies have never had incidents of bathroom assaults or harassment linked to their policies.
Hat tip: Dominic Holden at BuzzFeed.
