restroom Archives - DOES GOD EXIST? TODAY

If you have a transgender male who has decided that they are a female, what restroom do they use? Is a female who has decided they are a male safe in using a male restroom? Unfortunately, LGBTQ restroom issues are difficult to resolve.

On June 28, the Supreme Court refused to hear an appeal from the school board of Gloucester Count, Virginia. That let the decision of a lower federal court stand allowing transgender students the right to use the bathroom of their choice.

The case involves a student born as a girl but who began to identify as a male after completing the freshman year in high school and changing their name to Gavin. Parents of other students protested against Gavin using the boys’ restroom, so the school required the use of a unisex restroom. The American Civil Liberties Union represented Gavin in court. The lower court decided in favor of Gavin based on a federal law that prohibits schools from discriminating against students based on their sex.

As a public high school teacher, I find it hard to believe this whole situation. Policing Grimm’s situation when he is in the bathroom is virtually impossible, and the potential for harm to Gavin is great. Therefore, providing an essentially private restroom seems to be the safest and most logical solution to the situation.

The precedent created by this ruling is going to cause major LGBTQ restroom issues for schools and other public facilities. Accepting the biblical concept of male and female as creations of God would avoid these problems. However, being inflexible when operating outside of God’s creation produces massive problems like the Grimm case.

We suggest that instead of forcing one’s way into existing restrooms, the LGBTQ community needs to be willing to use unisex facilities to avoid potential harm. As Christians, we are concerned about their safety and well-being. We may disagree with their choices, but we want to do everything possible to avoid their abuse.

Reference: USA Today, South Bend Tribune for 6/19/21, page 8A.

As our society continues to accept any kind of behavior for the sake of tolerance, equal rights, and personal freedom, are we going to accept transgender bullying? The problem is that sometimes “personal rights” for one violates someone else’s rights.

In Citizen magazine (June/July 2017, page 11), there is a story about a “progressive” blogger by the name of Kristen Quintrall Lavin who had an experience that apparently has caused her to have concerns about the muddled atmosphere of sexual identity. Ms. Quintrall was in the women’s restroom at the Disney theme park when a “big burly guy” walked in. The room was full of a dozen women with kids, and in her words, “Everyone was visibly uncomfortable.” The man simply hung around watching. He knew no one would say anything because they knew the man would identify himself as a woman. She said, “We had been culturally bullied into silence.”

This woman calls herself a “progressive” and says, “I am totally cool with transgender people.” But she also says, “Gender just can’t be a feeling. Gender must be clearly defined to keep women safe. We cannot tell women they don’t know what a man is anymore.” The Bible clearly defines what it means to be a man or a woman. When those definitions and roles are destroyed, the result is abuse and chaos.
–John N. Clayton © 2017