The ACLU of South Dakota commends lawmakers on the Senate Judiciary Committee for voting to kill House Bill 1005.
House Bill 1005 – the “bathroom bill” – would have prohibited transgender students from using communal facilities – school bathrooms, locker rooms or sleeping rooms on overnight trips – that match their gender identity. By singling out transgender youth like this, House Bill 1005 would have violated federal and constitutional law.
“Transgender people, whether people know it or not, are already using the bathrooms and communal facilities they have a right to, and doing so without incident,” said Jett Jonelis, ACLU of South Dakota advocacy manager. “It doesn’t infringe on anyone rights to share spaces with those who are different. Today members of the Senate Judiciary Committee sent a strong message that all students — no matter their gender identity — should be treated with dignity and respect in South Dakota schools.”
A copy of the ACLU of South Dakota’s written testimony to the Senate Judiciary Committee is below.
About the ACLU of South Dakota
The American Civil Liberties Union of South Dakota is a non-partisan, nonprofit organization dedicated to the preservation and enhancement of civil liberties and civil rights. The ACLU of South Dakota is part of a three-state chapter that also includes North Dakota and Wyoming. The team in South Dakota is supported by staff in those states.
The ACLU believes freedoms of press, speech, assembly, and religion, and the rights to due process, equal protection and privacy, are fundamental to a free people. In addition, the ACLU seeks to advance constitutional protections for groups traditionally denied their rights, including people of color, women, and the LGBTQ+ and Two Spirit communities. The ACLU of South Dakota carries out its work through selective litigation, lobbying at the state and local level, and through public education and awareness of what the Bill of Rights means for the people of South Dakota.
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