Let’s face it, we have not been talking about this very long and we are already all sick of it. Most of us are wondering why this is an issue anyway. Don’t we have more important things to worry about? Yes, we do and so these are my final thoughts before I move on to complaining about more important things.
I have had a lot of discussions in the past day or two about bathrooms. I am sure you have, too. I am afraid that many are perhaps misunderstanding a few things, and so I would like to briefly set the record straight.
Let’s start with eye shadow and lipstick. These are colorings people put on their face to make them more attractive. They are neither good nor evil. And they are neither male nor female. They are just colorings people can put on their face. We have developed cultural norms that for some reason say that eye shadow and lipstick are only for girls, and not for boys. I understand those cultural norms and was brought up with them, but there is no rational reason why it must be that way.
I do not use lipstick or eye shadow or makeup. I also do not have any tattoos or piercings. I do not have long hair or wear dresses. Those are simply personal preferences. For those demanding that everyone adhere to every cultural norm I say you are wrong to do so. None of these things are good or evil. For my Christian friends, these are not salvation issues. These are personal preferences.
Nobody should ever be bullied or harassed because of their appearance. That goes for fat people and short people and people with green hair. On the other hand, each of us judges the appearance of everyone on a constant basis. If a colleague walks in with a short sleeved dress shirt and a clip-on tie, we make a judgment. We can’t help it. If someone has on an attractive outfit or changes their hair style we may compliment them. There is nothing wrong with that.
People should be free to dress how they wish and love whomever they wish and to worship as they see fit and to do so without worrying about people harassing or bullying them. I feel confident in saying that the vast majority of even the most conservative among us are against bullying and harassment of people who are different and do not conform to cultural norms. Americans are a people who have a deep respect for individual liberty and as long as nobody violates our own life, liberty, or property we will defend their right to “let their freak flag fly”.
In the last 24 hours I have learned more about public restrooms and showers than I ever wanted to know. The question is this: Is the idea of segregating public restrooms for boys and girls a “cultural norm” with no rational basis; or are there pragmatic reasons why societies around the world have chosen historically to separate males and females? Is this like the color pink, which has been arbitrarily assigned to females? Or is it some Victorian or Puritan attempt to shame people about sex?
I would argue that we developed the concept of boys and girls public restrooms for real pragmatic reasons, rather than simply arbitrary reasons. Some of it was literally plumbing based. Some of it was out of a concern about sex. And some of it was cultural. Before the late 1800’s there were not a lot of large public restrooms around; most would have been individual “water closets” or more likely outhouses. But as our society grew we needed larger facilities and they were segregated by gender. I don’t think there was any ill intent involved and I don’t think it was arbitrary. It was practical and nobody thought anything about it.
The question is, should we abandon this system in favor of one where we either have unisex facilities or we have single-occupant restrooms with a lock on the door? We could either have coed locker room showers or individual shower rooms with locks. I think everyone would be ok with the individual bathrooms and showers stalls with locks, but that is going to be costly. The coed shower facilities present an obvious concern of putting naked males and females in the same place together. This seems like a bad idea.
Part of this, it appears, is generational. When I was in high school and we had practice after school we showered before changing into our street clothes. I think we even had to shower after PE. From what I understand millennials would never consider showering in a public shower. In the dorms we had segregated dorms and public shower stalls. Apparently young people now avoid any possibility of ever being undressed, or seeing anyone else undressed, in any public setting. And many also go to great lengths to avoid having to use any public restroom at any time.
Why is it necessary to change everything for everyone? I am not sure it is. The status quo is fine with me. But the argument has been made that the current system of segregated facilities for people based on their genitalia is unfair – to transsexuals. It is said that forcing someone to use a restroom based on their X and Y chromosomes or genitalia will make some people uncomfortable and open them to ridicule, bullying, and harassment.
Bullying and harassment are never ok, and should never be tolerated. If a boy who wears eye shadow uses the boys’ room and is bullied, the bully must be punished and they must understand that it will not be tolerated. The root cause of the problem is the erroneous assumption that eye shadow should not be worn by boys and that the bully is therefore entitled to ridicule someone. It is this root cause, which is a lack of tolerance, which must be fixed.
Some have pointed out that in many cases the transgendered person does not want anyone to know about their actual biology, and that teachers and school administrators must be complicit in a lie in order to protect someone’s feelings. I don’t believe there is ever a need for teachers or administrators to reveal personal information or to be dishonest. Lying is never ok. Neither is revealing personal information.
So how should we handle this? I recommend we handle these delicate social issues on the most local level possible. In this case, I recommend that each school district develop their own policies with the help of the community they serve. I think school districts should leave enforcement of policies to school principals. When an individual case arises a principle should make a judgment call on a case-by-case basis, consistent with district rules.
I do not see any of this as a civil rights issue. I see no reason for the federal government to involve themselves to protect anyone’s liberty. All of our rights are inherent, and not given to us by the state. We have the right to practice our religion and defend ourselves and to free speech. We have a right to our life, liberty, and property. But we do not have a right to certain specific bathroom privileges. Unless there is a specific violation of someone’s inherent rights there is no reason for the federal government to be involved.
Furthermore, we should not tolerate the creation of a special group of people with “special rights”. If we wish to change our system of public facilities for everyone because we think the entire system is inappropriate or wrong, then change it across the board. But the idea that we will just carve out a special set of rights for one group is unacceptable, and especially egregious when handed down as an edict from the federal government.
Many of you are thinking that these are Title 9 protections, or that we already set up special “protected groups” in the Civil Rights Act. For the record, I have the same objections to the Civil Rights Act that Barry Goldwater had. It is not racism or bigotry; it is the recognition that Lady Justice wears a blindfold. It is the idea that each of us should be equal under the law. Equality is not a system of special privileges; it is a uniform treatment of all regardless of who they are or how they identify.
I am not familiar with all of the specific issues that prompted North Carolina to pass their law. I have not read their law, because I live in Missouri. I believe in federalism, and I think social issues like this one should be left to state and local governments to decide. Since I do live in Missouri let me say I do not favor any change in the status quo. I want local school districts and individual businesses to determine what is right and for society to deal with these issues by evolving into what works best one community at a time.
I am pretty sure that used to be the plan.
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