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Article CommentaryAnalysis and Commentary

The Transgender Bathroom Debate at the Intersection of Politics, Law, Ethics, and Science

Brian S. Barnett, Ariana E. Nesbit and Renée M. Sorrentino
Journal of the American Academy of Psychiatry and the Law Online June 2018, 46 (2) 232-241; DOI: https://doi.org/10.29158/JAAPL.003761-18
Brian S. Barnett
Dr. Barnett is fellow in the Massachusetts General Hospital/McLean Hospital Addiction Psychiatry Fellowship, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA. Dr Nesbit is a Forensic Psychiatry Fellow, University of California, Davis, Davis, CA. Dr. Sorrentino is Assistant Professor in Psychiatry, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA.
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Ariana E. Nesbit
Dr. Barnett is fellow in the Massachusetts General Hospital/McLean Hospital Addiction Psychiatry Fellowship, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA. Dr Nesbit is a Forensic Psychiatry Fellow, University of California, Davis, Davis, CA. Dr. Sorrentino is Assistant Professor in Psychiatry, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA.
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Renée M. Sorrentino
Dr. Barnett is fellow in the Massachusetts General Hospital/McLean Hospital Addiction Psychiatry Fellowship, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA. Dr Nesbit is a Forensic Psychiatry Fellow, University of California, Davis, Davis, CA. Dr. Sorrentino is Assistant Professor in Psychiatry, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA.
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This article has a correction. Please see:

  • Corrigendum - December 01, 2018

Abstract

The debate over whether transgender individuals should be allowed to use the public restrooms (including locker rooms and changing rooms) that correspond to their currently expressed gender rather than their biological sex has been of recent interest nationally. The first state law addressing transgender access to restrooms was in North Carolina in 2016. This law prohibited transgender individuals from using the restroom that corresponded to their gender. The terms used in the bill and other legal documents caused it to be referred to as the “bathroom bill.” Shortly thereafter, such bills were proposed in many states. Proponents of the bills identify the need to protect public safety by mandating that individuals use the facility that corresponds to their biological sex. Opponents describe such bills as discriminatory. The debate about these bills incorporates ethics-related, legal, and biological arguments. In this commentary, we review the history of such bills in the United States as well as the ethics-related, legal, and evidence-based arguments raised in the debate.

Footnotes

  • Disclosures of financial or other potential conflicts of interest: None.

  • © 2018 American Academy of Psychiatry and the Law
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Journal of the American Academy of Psychiatry and the Law Online: 46 (2)
Journal of the American Academy of Psychiatry and the Law Online
Vol. 46, Issue 2
1 Jun 2018
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The Transgender Bathroom Debate at the Intersection of Politics, Law, Ethics, and Science
Brian S. Barnett, Ariana E. Nesbit, Renée M. Sorrentino
Journal of the American Academy of Psychiatry and the Law Online Jun 2018, 46 (2) 232-241; DOI: 10.29158/JAAPL.003761-18

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The Transgender Bathroom Debate at the Intersection of Politics, Law, Ethics, and Science
Brian S. Barnett, Ariana E. Nesbit, Renée M. Sorrentino
Journal of the American Academy of Psychiatry and the Law Online Jun 2018, 46 (2) 232-241; DOI: 10.29158/JAAPL.003761-18
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    • History of Sex-Segregated Restrooms
    • Rationale for Gender-Neutral or Gender-Inclusive Restrooms
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