I live in Chesterfield and I oppose Petition 432.

This petition is not about locker rooms. The Board of Health has no business labeling groups of people harmful based on who they are. 

There are real public health issues facing women and girls in Virginia, like domestic violence, maternal health, and poverty. Don’t let this hateful petition distract from your important mission to protect the health and promote the well-being of ALL people in Virginia.

Across our races, backgrounds, and genders, we all deserve to be treated fairly. There is a nationwide effort by some politicians and interest groups to force transgender people and LGBTQ+ people out of public life. These political attacks harm us all, whether we’re gay or straight, transgender or not, because they foster discrimination and distract us from the real problems we face. 

Discriminating against anyone based on who they are is not what this state and this country represents. We have always welcomed everyone, and we are richer for the diverse ways we live. Transgender individuals in particular seem to be current targets for all kinds of discrimination and hate. As one transgender woman told me, "If this was a choice, I would have given up after a month of transitioning. It's not a choice; it's about living who I really am." People change their bodies all the time to reflect who they are: they get face lifts and breast reductions. They dye their hair and get nose jobs and sundry other procedures so they can live their truth. Let's allow transgender people to do the same, without discrimination.