House Speaker Mike Johnson has decided to limit the use of men's and women's bathrooms in the Capitol to those of their biological sex. This is in response to the election of Sarah McBride, who will become the first transgender woman in Congress in January. “We need to focus on reducing the cost of housing, health care and childcare, rather than creating culture wars,” says McBride.
“All single-sex spaces in the Capitol Buildings and the House Office Building, such as restrooms, locker rooms, and changing rooms, are reserved for individuals of this biological sex,” House Speaker Mike Johnson said. “Women deserve women-only spaces,” she added.
Johnson's statement follows the debate caused by the election of Delaware Democrat Sarah McBride to the House of Representatives. He is the first transgender person in the history of Congress.
Speaker of the House of Representatives Mike Johnson JIM LO Scalzo/PAP/EPA
In response, Representative Nancy Mays of South Carolina introduced a bill that would ban transgender women from women's bathrooms at the Capitol. Mace also posted signs on the bathroom doors saying they were for “biological” women.
“We should be focusing on reducing the cost of housing, health care and childcare, not creating culture wars,” McBride responded.
Rules for the use of rooms in the Capitol and rooms belonging to the House of Representatives are the responsibility of the Speaker of the House. In his statement, Mike Johnson said that transgender people can use unisex bathrooms and that all members of Congress have separate toilets in their chambers.
After this year's US elections, Republicans hold the majority in both the House of Representatives and the Senate.
Main photo: JIM LO SCALZO/PAP/EPA
