WASHINGTON, D.C.–District of Columbia residents hold mixed feelings about gender neutral bathrooms, which are appearing with greater frequency throughout the city as officials with the Office of Human Rights track compliance.
Gender inclusive bathrooms have been an issue prevalent in the district, where laws require facilities with public restrooms to make all stalls gender neutral.
But, despite a backlash in North Carolina last year over its restrictive laws, some here still say they feel their safety could be jeopardized.
“I wouldn’t be certain whether there are other people I might not be comfortable with inside these bathrooms with my girls,” said Bryan Pascual, 49, a father of three, who said his daughters use public restrooms without him.
Pascual also fears that if these bathrooms are installed in schools different sexes would have access to the same bathrooms where there are no security cameras or teacher supervision.
Nationwide, older Americans and those who are more religious believe people
should use bathrooms that correspond to the gender they were born to.
The idea of separate facilities for just men and women has been deeply rooted in the ideals of the public, damaging those in our society that identify as transgender and gender nonconforming, according to an expert in the field.
Research by Jody L. Herman from the University of California at Los Angeles School of Law showed that people in the district identifying as LGBT are more likely to experience discrimination. More than two thirds of respondents in her study reported experiencing at least one instance of verbal harassment in gender-segregated bathrooms. Some faced violence.
Knowing what transgender people face, the district Office of Human Rights is taking on the issue.
“Public bathrooms are never enjoyable, but for transgender people and many others, using a public bathroom can be a highly stressful and even dangerous experience,” the Office’s website reads.
It’s asking for the public’s help identifying bathrooms in the city that aren’t compliant with its policy. Using #safebathroomsdc, people can tell the office about restrooms that are still gender-specific.
20 year old American University student Michael Mannello supports gender neutral bathrooms and has noticed that people in the district are not aware enough that gender is ambiguous for some people.
Mannello comes from a conservative background and does understand the reservations some might hold on the issue, but to Mannello it’s just a bathroom and “at the end of the day, if I got to pee, I got to pee.”