Tuesday, February 05, 2008

Rumblings on the horizon

It's Super Tuesday, and I know everyone's mind is on the upcoming election.

However since this site is one that believes in pre-planning and strategy, I want to make everyone aware of something to place in the back of their mind . . .

Or as C.S. Lewis once said, "something worth knowing."

ENDA will be coming soon and I have a suspicion that the anti-gay industry is already formulating a battle plan.

And it involves the transgender community, bathrooms, and locker rooms.

Remember a while back when I talked about a group's ridiculous stunt in testing a non-discrimination law. They allegedly sent a man dressed as a woman into a women's locker room at the local gym.

Well I am getting rumblings that this stunt may not have been unsucessful. At press time, it seems that the group may have gotten half the signatures they need to push a referendum of the law. Of course they need to get the other half by next week, but the fact of the matter is that their fear tactics may have been successful.

And (this has not been confirmed) it seems that they were getting help from pastors telling their congregants that the law would lead to men being able to invade ladies' restrooms.

I will be keeping abreast of this situation.

Then there is this from Florida:

A heated and vocal response to a new Gainesville ordinance that extends rights to transgender individuals has garnered national attention.

. . . Business owners say they are concerned about the public accommodation portion of the ordinance, which requires people not be denied access to public facilities based on the fact that they identify with a gender other than what they were born as.

Joe Cirulli, founder of Gainesville Health & Fitness Centers, the city's largest fitness provider, was among those who waited in line to address the City Commission Monday night. His comments were quick and to the point: How would this affect GH&FC, which provides showers and locker rooms for both men and women at all its centers except for its one women's center that has facilities only for women.

Then comes this lovely gem from our friend Peter LaBarbera:

‘T’-Party at Creating Change in Detroit - ‘Each of Us Can Decide for Ourselves in which Bathroom We Belong’

This is not going to be the end of it. I suspect when ENDA comes up again, we are going to be inudated with horror stories of men in ladies bathrooms and locker rooms.

I sincerely hope that I am not the only one who notices this.