EXCLUSIVE! Trans Bathroom Debate Rages On In the Capital VIDEO: Javannah Davis Interview w/ Raquel Willis
(December 5, 2024) - Today, equality org, Gender Liberation Movement (GLM) led dozens of social justice activists and allies in a “Bathroom Sit-In” at a congressional bathroom. The bathroom was positioned very closely to Speaker Mike Johnson’s office who is implementing Rep. Nancy Mace's policy banning Trans people from using restrooms in government buildings. Protestors with banners that read, “FLUSH BATHROOM BIGOTRY” and chanted from inside the Women’s restroom and down the halls were arrested by Capital police. Chelsea Manning, GLM co-founder Raquel Willis, abortion liberation activist Renee Bracey Sherman, and other social justice leaders were among the individuals that were removed and detained by police.
The fear is that the proposal to expand bill H. RES. 1579 would ban bathroom access for Trans people in all federal buildings and could extend to educational institutions, museums, and other public landmarks. Opponents of the bill insist this move will not only compromise the safety of Trans women but put everyone including cis-gender women at risk. This move inspired by Rep. Sarah McBride, the first openly Trans state senator being elected, sends a clear message of the restrictions the incoming Trump administration seeks to impose.
GLM asserts, “This bathroom sit-in sets an example of the righteous defiance and solidarity needed under a second Trump administration. Cis, trans, nonbinary, and gender nonconforming folks will have to defend, protect, and fight alongside each other. For this action, cis and trans women demanded an end to bathroom bigotry and preservation of our shared spaces while cis and trans men blocked and protected the entrance to the bathroom. Survivors of sexual violence also demanded that anti-trans bigots stop spreading disinformation about trans people who are disproportionately the victims of violence not perpetrators of it.”
Co-founder Raquel Willis added, “Everyone deserves to use the restroom without fear of discrimination or violence. Trans folks are no different. We deserve dignity and respect and we will fight until we get it,” said GLM co-founder Raquel Willis, “In the 2024 election, trans folks were left to fend for ourselves after nearly $200 million of attack ads were disseminated across the United States. Now, as Republican politicians, try to remove us from public life, Democratic leaders are silent as hell. But we can’t transform bigotry and hate with inaction. We must confront it head on. Democrats must rise up, filibuster, and block this bill.”
This protest falls on the heels of Gender-Affirming Care for Trans Youth being argued in front of the Supreme Court the previous day.
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GENDER LIBERATION MOVEMENT (GLM) is an emergent and innovative grassroots and volunteer-run national collective that builds direct action, media, and policy interventions centering bodily autonomy, self-determination, the pursuit of fulfillment, and collectivism in the face of gender-based sociopolitical threats.
Watch Javannah’s Full Interview with Raquel Willis: https://youtu.be/pTLFmKppdjc
Photos by Alexa B Wilkinson
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