North Cook News

Gender-neutral bathroom legislation that a Cook County state representative warned would create a clear and present danger to women and girls - objections called "transphobic" by the bill's primary sponsor - is now in the Senate after passage by House Democrats.

House Bill 3195's primary sponsor, Rep. Katie Stuart (D-Edwardsville) claims the bill is about providing bathroom access to caregivers of the opposite gender, but Rep. Tom Morrison (R-Palatine) told North Cook News that common sense screams of the dangers posed by the legislation.

Rep. Katie Stuart (D-Edwardsville) | ilga.gov/

"This isn’t complicated," Morrison said. "This bill intends to create multi-stall restrooms for use of both men and women at the same time. That defies what we all know about privacy needs for both sexes, and safety for women and girls. That is why I do not support this legislation."

HB 3195, also called the "Equitable Restrooms Act," has picked up a reputation as LGBT bathroom legislation, which in turn seeks to smother alarm about opportunities predators will quickly find, Morrison said.

"In any other discussion, most everyone agrees that women and girls are at particular risk of male violence," he said. "It is disingenuous of the sponsor to claim this bill is to enable mothers to bring male children into a restroom with them. That action is socially accepted and not prohibited by law. Why do mothers do that, by the way? Most mothers would answer that they keep young sons with them because of the risk of predation in the men’s room."

HB 3195 passed the House along party lines on April 22 and now is in the Senate Assignments Committee.

Shortly after passage in the House, Stuart told the Chicago Sun-Times that her legislation is well meaning and has the very best and nothing but good intentions at heart.

"This bill is really about when you have a caregiver that’s an opposite gender, that they can now go in with their loved one such as a mother can go in with a son and help in the restroom," she told the Sun-Times on Friday. "And we're talking about a normal bodily function, a human bodily function. That's all we’re talking about."

Stuart also told the Sun-Times that Morrison's objections are "clearly transphobic."

This isn't the first time Illinois Democrat lawmakers have pushed a gender-centric bathroom agenda. In July 2019, Gov. J.B. Pritzker signed legislation that required all single-occupancy public restrooms be gender-neutral.

Morrison didn't care for that legislation either and says HB 3195 is just as bad.

"All single occupancy public restrooms are now gender neutral, so not only is this multi-stall bill a bad idea, it is completely unnecessary according to the sponsor's stated goals," Morrison said.

He isn't the only one alarmed by the legislation.

"Women and girls contacted me to express concern about using gender neutral facilities, especially when alone," he said, pointing out that women's restrooms are generally considered safe spaces for girls to enter alone.

"Yet any man would have access to gender neutral spaces without raising any concerns of entry or exit," he continued. "Nothing would prevent a predator from just 'hanging out' while women and girls are using the facilities."

Morrison pointed to "numerous" instances of men hiding cameras in bathrooms, even in Palatine and Rolling Meadows.

"This bill just gives them easier access to these spaces without raising suspicion of their activities," he said. "We should be actively working to prevent voyeurism and assault, not enabling them."