Local News
Arkansas Senate passes the “bathroom bill”
By 
Editor-in-Chief
Little Rock, Arkansas – According to a bill being considered by the Arkansas Senate, restroom designations in schools must take into account the gender assigned at birth.
House Bill 1156 would only allow men or women to use the facilities, locker rooms, and overnight accommodations.
The law was introduced a few months ago by Rep. Mary Bentley, who claimed it was necessary to prevent problems like bullying, harassment, and sexual assault.
Sen. Clarke Tucker argued that it does anything but that for transgender children on the Senate floor on Monday.
“Kids who are trans and have to use special bathrooms – they dehydrate themselves and get urinary tract infections so that they can avoid having to use the bathroom,” Tucker said.
According to Bentley, the legislation will include Pre-Kindergarten through 12th-grade kids attending public and charter schools.
She stated that administrators, teachers, and principals would be held accountable and would be subject to a $1,000 punishment if they disobeyed.
Following the bill’s passage in the Senate on Monday, the ACLU of Arkansas issued a statement.
It read,
“HB1156 is part of an ongoing and coordinated national attack targeting trans youth. This discriminatory bill is not only unconstitutional, but it also puts trans youth in harm’s way and creates a hostile environment that could lead to bullying, harassment, and exclusion. Instead of listening to the experts, the medical community, and the affected youth and their families, the legislature is taking its lead from anti-LGBTQ outsiders. It’s past time for our elected officials to start listening to the people they represent, especially those most affected by their actions. We stand with trans youth and will continue to fight for the rights and dignity of all Arkansans.”
Before Governor Sarah Sanders can sign the bill, an amendment must now be approved by the House side. According to Bentley, the modification is purely technical and has no material impact on the bill’s core provisions.
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