Update: With a 40-7 vote, Senate lawmakers passed an amended version of House Bill 1144. The bill now goes back to the House for concurrence.
Background: House Bill 1144 would prevent K-12 public schools from having all-gender bathrooms, including those that are single occupancy. Schools that don’t comply with the law, should it pass, would be fined $2,500 per violation.
Our position: The ACLU of North Dakota opposes House Bill 1144. Policies that single out transgender youth like this violate federal and constitutional law.
House Bill 1144 isn’t motivated by privacy concerns. It’s motivated by ignorance, misinformation and fear. It doesn’t infringe on anyone’s rights to share spaces with those who are different. Like previous efforts to expel people of color, people with disabilities, and others from communal spaces, these arguments for privacy just mask a fear of difference. Eroding the fundamental rights of transgender people is dangerous for every one of us. When the government has the power to deny legal rights to one group, all Americans’ rights are severely threatened.
