Minnesota Women’s Press – Elizabeth Noll – Assistant Editor
In his early 20s, Alex Nelson became a cop. It was his dream job; the only job he?d ever wanted. Unfortunately, his dream didn?t last long. A problem surfaced right away?a big problem. The department told Nelson he had to use the women?s bathroom.
During the extensive testing and numerous interviews that preceded Nelson?s hiring, he?d been open about the fact that he was a pre-operative transgender man: biologically a woman but understanding himself to be a man. The department had all the files of his therapist and his medical doctors when they welcomed him to the force. But once he was hired, they balked at allowing him to decide which bathroom to use. A city ordinance, they said, made it illegal to let a person use a bathroom meant for the opposite sex. Nelson countered that they were discriminating against him and that the Minnesota Human Rights Act made transgender discrimination illegal. Meeting after meeting with department administrators didn?t solve anything, and within a few months of being hired, Nelson filed a lawsuit against the department.