Justice
Turning Public Restrooms Into Safe Spaces for Transgender New Yorkers
A new mandate about single-sex restrooms has raised the bar for what cities can do to engineer inclusivity.
On Monday, New York City mayor Bill de Blasio signed an executive order requiring that people be allowed to choose which public, multi-stall bathroom to use on the basis of the gender with which they identify. The ordinance took effect immediately; DNAinfo reports that it will affect 2,200 bathrooms in 55 city-run buildings, including public pools, gyms, and offices.
Upon signing the order, de Blasio said, “access to bathrooms and other single-sex facilities is a fundamental human right that should not be restricted or denied to any individual.” All New Yorkers, he added, “should feel safe in our city—and this starts with our city’s buildings.”