Gov. Baker signs transgender bill

We urge Governor Baker to sign this bill without delay & finally finish the work of securing equal protection under the law for transgender people everywhere in the Commonwealth.

The compromise bill that landed on Baker’s desk included language specifying that the attorney general should issue guidelines to law enforcement agencies about individuals whose “assertion of gender identity is for an improper objective”.

Democratic U.S. Rep. Joe Kennedy, a grandson of Bobby Kennedy who had testified at the Statehouse in favor of the bill, said the new law will help lift “the cloud of discrimination that our transgender family members, friends and neighbors have lived under in MA”.

Baker said no one should be discriminated against in MA due to their identity.

The law, which goes into effect on October 1, adds the phrase “gender identity” to state anti-discrimination laws, placing sexual identity on par with immutable characteristics such as race and sex. Hundreds of business in Texas are pressuring state legislators there to abandon their efforts to enact a similar law. The Massachusetts State House, dominated by Democrats in the Legislature, was unable to previously pass the law despite a Democrat in the Corner Office, Deval Patrick. However, the measure excluded protections in public accommodations. Since this bill was first introduced nine years ago, transgender people courageously have come forward to educate lawmakers about our experiences with discrimination and to dispel myths and stereotypes about who we are. It would also prohibit discrimination against transgender people in public accommodations such as pools and restaurants.

There is overwhelming support throughout the state and the region for the protections Governor Baker signed into law today.

The bill would allow transgender people to access sex-segregated locker rooms and bathrooms based on their gender identity rather than their anatomical sex. “This tremendous victory is a testament to the transformative power of story telling”. “I’ve been talking about it with people for four or five years now”.

State’s Attorney General Maura Healey has been a vocal supporter of the legislation from day one, rallying local and national figures to the cause.