Family Research Council's Tony Perkins Testifies in Support of Texas Privacy Act

AUSTIN, Texas, March 7, 2017 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- This morning, Tony Perkins, president of the Family Research Council, testified before the Texas Senate State Affairs Committee in support of the Texas Privacy Act (SB 6), which will protect the safety and privacy of women and children. The bill prevents public schools, state government agencies, and political subdivisions from adopting policies that would open women's showers, bathrooms, and changing facilities to men and visa-versa.

It also prevents political subdivisions from forcing private entities, including contractors, to open their showers, locker rooms and bathrooms to people of the opposite sex. It leaves private entities free to determine their own policies regarding the use of shared bathrooms and showers.

In Perkins' testimony in support of S.B. 6 he shared his concerns as a father with disregarding biological sex as criteria for showers, changing facilities, and bathrooms. "As a parent of 5 children, I am more than sympathetic to the sensitivity and the self-consciousness that students have in undressing in a school locker room, or taking a shower in front of their peers – it would be traumatic for many children and adolescents to do so in the presence of someone of the opposite biological sex." Perkins went on, "The reason we have separate 'boys' rooms' and 'girls' rooms' is not because their 'gender identities' are different or their 'gender expression' is different. It is because their basic physical anatomy is different."

"Let me emphasize that the threat does not primarily come from persons who identify as transgender," continued Perkins.  "Rather it comes from those who might exploit the situation by posing as transgender to gain easier access to (usually) women's bathrooms… where they can engage in voyeurism, indecent exposure, or even sexual assault," explained Perkins.

"Some people may argue that we have laws against these behaviors already and new laws won't deter them.   Others may argue such predators will attempt such harmful conduct regardless of law. These arguments ignore the deterrent value of the ordinary citizen empowered to sound the alarm when something appears out of place – like a biological male in a women's locker room," added Perkins.  "Women and girls may be less willing and less likely to 'say something if they see something' out of fear they would be charged with 'gender identity discrimination.'"

"Senate Bill 6 provides for the legitimate needs of the 0.6% of the population that reportedly identify as transgender, without trampling on the rights to safety and privacy of the vast majority," concluded Perkins.

Read Tony Perkins's full testimony: S.B. 6

SOURCE Family Research Council

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