Trans man schools lawmakers on why "bathroom bills" are ridiculous & dangeroushttps://www.lgbtqnation.com/2026/03/trans-man-schools-lawmakers-on-why-bathroom-bills-are-ridiculous-dangerous/ 🔗Greg Owen (18 March 2026)
A trans man in Idaho dismantled the latest "bathroom bill" up for a vote in the Idaho legislature, laying out point by point why it was unworkable, unfair, and cruel.
Boise resident Nixon Matthews used his own example of trying to use a restroom if the bill were enacted into law.
"Say, one of the men here walks into the men's bathroom, and you see me walk into a stall, and you know I'm trans. And since you're all law-abiding citizens, you're going to call 911. You're going to say, 'Hello, 911? There's a trans person in the bathroom. They're peeing right now, I'm scared. Please come and arrest them.'"
If he doesn't want to be arrested, Matthews said, he'd have to use a women's room instead.
"Say I happen to walk behind a woman, and her husband sees someone who looks like me following his wife into the bathroom," Matthews continued. "What do you think happens next? Maybe the cops get called. But more likely, that man is going to follow me into the bathroom, confront me, and even assault me."
"So every single day," Matthews said, "when I'm out in public, I have to decide: do I feel like going to jail today, or do I feel like being attacked?"
A first offense would carry a misdemeanor, punishable by up to one year in prison, for anyone who "knowingly and willfully" enters a bathroom or changing room designated for the opposite sex. A second offense ups the penalty to a felony, punishable by up to five years in prison.
