During a recent episode of James Dobson's Family Talk radio program, Dobson and his guests discussed the evils of trans-inclusive anti-discrimination laws. Such laws have been dubbed "Bathroom Bills" by the anti-LGBT right because they'd allow people to use bathrooms.
Let me repeat that: The anti-LGBT right is upset about people using bathrooms. The problem is that they are pretty narrow minded when it comes to who counts as a person.
One of Dobson's guests was Tim LeFever, who is on the executive board of Privacy for All, a California-based group that "exists to protect privacy in restrooms, showers, locker rooms and changing rooms … by asserting that individuals should use these facilities in accordance with their biological sex, rather than their gender identity."
In other words: it's all based on whether or not you're born with a penis or a vagina.
The opposition to trans-inclusive legislation hinges on a fundamental misunderstanding of what gender identity is. When folks like LeFever and Dobson picture a transgender woman, for example, all they see is a man in a dress, specifically a pervert looking to harm children. When your understanding of gender identity is so narrow and paranoid, it's no wonder this issue gets your panties in a bunch.
According to LeFever, bathrooms are "sex-separated because of our physical bodies."
I'm not sure what that means. I mean, it's true that you don't find urinals in the ladies' room because they're very hard to sit on. But that doesn't seem like a good enough reason to freak out.
Dobson says that gender identity isn't a real thing. It's all just based on a whim.
"The way you perceive yourself can change every six months!" declares Dobson. "You can be a boy at one time and a girl at the next time and it's not based on any biology."
I'm not sure who Dobson is speaking for, but I doubt he's declaring that he changes from male to female every six months. He's actually saying, "I'm an ignorant ass."
"I just read an example of a case where a girl was in the bathroom and the whole football team came in and took pictures, you know, selfies, if you will, over the top, of her in the bathroom," Dobson says. "I mean, have we gone absolutely nuts?"
LeFever responds, "I doubt that all the members of that football team were suffering from gender identity issues. They were gaming the system."
I agree with Dobson that such a thing would be pretty nuts, even if he doesn't understand what a selfie is.
I also agree with LeFever that this wasn't an issue of gender dysphoria. I doubt the football team declared, "We're girls right now!" and rushed into the bathroom with their iPhones. They weren't gaming the system, they were being sexist dumb fucks. We have plenty of evidence that young men are capable of doing terrible things to young women (Steubenville, anyone?). What Dobson's story doesn't prove is that this incident was made possible by an anti-discrimination ordinance.
The right's obsession with bathrooms is just weird. Yes, people should feel safe in places where they are most vulnerable and that includes toilets and locker rooms. But the idea that there is this Great Pervert Conspiracy to let bad guys put on a dress so they can watch women pee is totally insane.
Now that the right has lost the marriage equality battle, their priorities are, quite literally, going down the toilet. Let's hope they get plenty of shit for it.
