LGBT advocates fight back against ‘bathroom bill’ rhetoric

BayWindows.com – by Ethan Jacobs – Associate Editor

To hear opponents of the transgender rights bill describe the legislation, one might think it would unleash full-scale anarchy on the Commonwealth. House Bill 1728 makes the state’s hate crimes law trans-inclusive and bans discrimination based on gender identity or expression in the areas of employment, housing, credit, public accommodations and public education; opponents have attempted to narrow the debate on the bill by focusing almost exclusively on the issue of bathrooms, locker rooms and women’s gyms.