I haven't seen any threads on this topic, so here it is. Basically here in Houston Mayor Annise Parker has made a law were a male or female can choose which restroom they want to use. I don't know what y'all think about this, but in my opoioin I don't like this new law and think it should be removed.

http://www.houstontx.gov/equal_rights_ordinance.pdf

http://www.myfoxhouston.com/story/26097255/is-the-equal-rights-ordinance-being-used

http://www.galvestondailynews.com/news_ap/texas/article_81af4ea6-cfad-5f1e-aaf9-322f15e7a1c3.html?mode=jqm

http://www.click2houston.com/news/critics-of-houston-equal-rights-ordinance-speakout/27155668

I haven't seen any threads on this topic, so here it is. Basically here in Houston Mayor Annise Parker has made a law were a male or female can choose which restroom they want to use. I don't know what y'all think about this, but in my opoioin I don't like this new law and think it should be removed.

That's just about the worst summary possible of the ordinance. What it seems to do is prohibit, on a city level, discrimination in employment, housing, public accommodation, etc., on the basis of race, sex, religion, and, most importantly, sexual preference and gender identity (that's the most important result because discrimination on the basis of the other things is already prohibited by federal law). The claim about bathrooms was the result of a single clause regarding transgendered people (where that is, in fact, a concern), which was removed from the legislation. The sole reference you make to the contents of the law is a clause which was not in the ordinance as passed (and which is also much, much, much more complicated than "men and women choose what bathroom they want", as the question gets rather complicated for transgendered people, because the bathroom appropriate to their identity is not the same as that which their biology would seem to dictate).

Many articles point out that Houston was one of the last major US cities to pass such legislation, and the "bathroom" debacle was the talking point for the super religious, "family values" crowd. The arguments against this legislation were so narrow minded and singularly focused it was ridiculous, ill informed, and simply incorrect.

 

Here's what the actual legislation says: 

 

It is the policy of the city that all of its residents and persons subject to its jurisdiction shall not be subject to discrimination based on an individual's sex, race, color, ethnicity, national origin, age, familial status, marital status, military status, religion, disability, sexual orientation, genetic information, gender identity or pregnancy.

 

Notice how the language of the actual ordinance protects EVERY HUMAN BEING. Everyone deserves basic human rights and equal treatment. The opponents of this ordinance chose to focus on one single aspect, distorting it with their bias and opinion, failing to realize that it protects everyone including them. Contrary to some of the more ridiculous talking points I've heard, this ordinance does require that all bathrooms become unisex and it does not pave the way for children to raped and victimized by sexual predators...

 

As a Houston resident, I'm proud to live in a city that recognizes the value of humanity and equal rights for all. You know, that thing that was mentioned several hundred years ago around the time this country was founded, all men are created equal, or something like that. Seems like most of us have forgotten that part of our heritage and our country's intended core values.