The School Committee unanimously resolved to support the current state law banning discrimination on the basis of gender identity in public accommodations. At their Monday night meeting, committee members endorsed a Yes vote on Question 3 in next Tuesday’s election.
Question 3 is a referendum asking voters if they approve of a 2016 law that protects the rights of transgender people in public places, including restrooms consistent with their gender identity. The Harvard League of Women Voters has similarly endorsed a Yes vote.
The School Committee resolution, presented by member Shannon Molloy, noted that the district’s statement of core values calls for a culture of inclusion where students have “a sense of safety and connectedness.” Yet most transgender students in Massachusetts have faced mistreatment at some point during their school years, according to a 2015 study referenced in Molloy’s resolution.
Opponents of the current law have charged that it violates women’s privacy and safety by allowing transgender women to use women’s restrooms, according to Debby Dugan of the organization Keep MA Safe, writing in the state’s “Information for Voters” booklet. But Molloy’s resolution cited a 2018 study that found fewer incidents of privacy or safety violations in places with anti-discrimination laws than in those without such laws.
A Yes vote would keep the current law in place and put discrimination against transgender people on the same prohibited list as discrimination based on race, sex, religion, national origin, or disability, according to the voter information booklet. Most public opinion polls have indicated that Massachusetts voters support the current law. But even if the No votes prevail, the School Committee’s resolution concludes, “the Harvard Public School District’s anti-discrimination policies will stand in full force and effect.”
