Ohio students bellyache over bill that requires people on campus to use restrooms of their actual gender
One student said the bill is ‘very negative for young transgender people.’
Another said the governor is trying to ‘erase the existence of gay people,’ though the legislation has nothing to do with sexual orientation.
Students in Ohio recently expressed their outrage over newly enacted legislation that mandates that individuals should use campus restrooms that correspond to their actual biological sex.
That legislation, the “Protect All Students Act,” stops “institutions of higher education from knowingly permitting members of the female biological sex to use a student restroom, locker room, changing room, or shower room that is designated for the male biological sex and vice versa,” as described by the Ohio Legislative Service Commission.
The bill was introduced by State Rep. Adam Bird, and included as part of another bill, Senate Bill 104. The Protect All Students Act was signed into law by Ohio Gov. Mike DeWine, and will take effect on Feb. 25.
[RELATED: Borough Council designates Penn State University town as transgender ‘sanctuary city’]
Pink News, a website that publishes stories related to “LGBTQ+” matters, worked together with The Lantern, the newspaper of Ohio State University, to ask students what they thought about the legislation.
One student said: “Say, I transitioned into a woman. If I’m going into the men’s bathroom now, while dressing like a woman and perhaps having undergone surgery to become a woman, it’s still going to be a no-win scenario. I’d be walking into the men’s room looking like a woman. All that’s going to do is push kids to stay further closeted and not want to come out.”
Another called it “very negative for young transgender people,” and another student said that the governor approved the legislation to “erase the existence of gay people,” though the “Protect All Student Act” specifically deals with campus restrooms and not with any individual’s sexual orientation.
The issue of gender ideology is one that consistently causes controversy on college and university campuses.
In August, for example, Campus Reform reported that certain men’s restrooms at Duke University had tampon dispensers installed. Several other universities have also previously taken similar measures, as Campus Reform wrote in 2021.
The issue has particularly caused controversy when it comes to sports, most recently when a six-foot-tall male player, Blaire Fleming, played on the women’s volleyball team of San Jose State University, causing widespread outrage and leading to several women’s teams forfeiting matches against him.
Campus Reform has reached out to the legislation’s sponsor, State Rep. Bird, for comment. This article will be updated accordingly.
