AS IT IS 2016-02-21 South Dakota Governor To Consider 'Bathroom' Bill

AS IT IS 2016-02-21 South Dakota Governor To Consider 'Bathroom' Bill

The South Dakota Senate passed a bill this week that orders people in public schools to use restrooms that align¹ with their gender² at birth.

Lawmakers in the midwestern American state passed the measure Tuesday. The Senate voted 20-15 to send the bill to Republican Gov. Dennis Daugaard. If he signs the bill, it will become South Dakota state law.

Daugaard earlier suggested he would support the measure. Then, last week he said he would need to study it more before making a decision.

The bill's supporters say it is meant to protect the privacy of students. Opponents say it discriminates³ against vulnerable young people.

The law orders schools to provide a "reasonable accommodation" for transgender students. This could mean bathrooms that serve one person at a time. Or schools could establish "controlled use" of a bathroom, locker⁴ room or shower room normally used by staff.

State Senator David Omdahl urged other legislators Tuesday to support the bill. The Republican said it was designed to keep, in his words, "the innocence⁵ of our young people."

Democratic Party lawmakers as well as some Republican Party members unsuccessfully opposed the measure in the Senate.

The American Civil Liberties Union of South Dakota and the Human Rights Campaign have publicly opposed the measure. The groups called on Daugaard to veto the legislation.

Chad Griffin is president of the non-profit Human Rights Campaign. He said in a statement Tuesday, "History has never looked kindly⁶ upon those who attack the basic civil rights of their fellow Americans, and history will not treat kindly those who support this discriminatory measure."

Transgender supporters have criticized Omdahl and other lawmakers’ comments about transgender people. At a recent event, for example, Omdahl called transgenders “twisted.”

Thomas Lewis is a transgender student in his final year of high school in Sioux Falls, the state's most populous⁷ city. He described the passage of the bill as “shocking.”

Lewis said, "At this point, I'm hoping that the governor has a sense of humanity and the common sense not to write this bill into law."

Federal officials say barring students from restrooms that correspond to their gender identity violates the federal law known as Title IX.

Transgender issues are more public because of celebrities⁸ like Caitlyn Jenner. Jenner was Bruce Jenner and identified as a male when he won gold in the Decathalon at the summer Olympics in 1976. But last year, the former athlete came out as a transgender woman with the new name of Caitlyn.

Words in This Story

restroom – n. a room in a public place with a sink and toilet

transgender – adj. of or relating to people who have a sexual identity that is not clearly male or clearly female

vulnerable – adj. easily hurt or harmed physically⁹, mentally, or emotionally

accommodation -– n. something done to provide what is needed or wanted for someone or something

staff – n. a group of people who work for an organization or business

twisted – adj. strange and unpleasant : not normal

1 align   

vt.使成一线，结盟，调节；vi.成一线，结盟

参考例句：

• Align the ruler and the middle of the paper.使尺子与纸张的中部成一条直线。
• There are signs that the prime minister is aligning himself with the liberals.有迹象表明首相正在与自由党人结盟。

2 gender   

n.（生理上的）性，（名词、代词等的）性

参考例句：

• French differs from English in having gender for all nouns.法语不同于英语，所有的名词都有性。
• Women are sometimes denied opportunities solely because of their gender.妇女有时仅仅因为性别而无法获得种种机会。

3 discriminates   

分别，辨别，区分( discriminate的第三人称单数 )； 歧视，有差别地对待

参考例句：

• The new law discriminates against lower-paid workers. 这条新法律歧视低工资的工人。
• One test governs state legislation that discriminates against interstate commerce. 一个检验约束歧视州际商业的州立法。 来自英汉非文学 - 环境法 - 环境法

4 locker   

n.更衣箱，储物柜，冷藏室，上锁的人

参考例句：

• At the swimming pool I put my clothes in a locker.在游泳池我把衣服锁在小柜里。
• He moved into the locker room and began to slip out of his scrub suit.他走进更衣室把手术服脱下来。

5 innocence   

n.无罪；天真；无害

参考例句：

• There was a touching air of innocence about the boy.这个男孩有一种令人感动的天真神情。
• The accused man proved his innocence of the crime.被告人经证实无罪。

6 kindly   

adj.和蔼的，温和的，爽快的；adv.温和地，亲切地

参考例句：

• Her neighbours spoke of her as kindly and hospitable.她的邻居都说她和蔼可亲、热情好客。
• A shadow passed over the kindly face of the old woman.一道阴影掠过老太太慈祥的面孔。

7 populous   

adj.人口稠密的，人口众多的

参考例句：

• London is the most populous area of Britain.伦敦是英国人口最稠密的地区。
• China is the most populous developing country in the world.中国是世界上人口最多的发展中国家。

8 celebrities   

n.（尤指娱乐界的）名人( celebrity的名词复数 )；名流；名声；名誉

参考例句：

• He only invited A-list celebrities to his parties. 他只邀请头等名流参加他的聚会。
• a TV chat show full of B-list celebrities 由众多二流人物参加的电视访谈节目

9 physically   

adj.物质上，体格上，身体上，按自然规律

参考例句：

• He was out of sorts physically,as well as disordered mentally.他浑身不舒服，心绪也很乱。
• Every time I think about it I feel physically sick.一想起那件事我就感到极恶心。