The Target Debate

By now, I'm sure you've heard about people taking stances on one side or the other regarding Target's decision to make bathrooms gender neutral. So I'm just going to add my opinion to the pot, as well as an idea I have that is something of a compromise.



First, I think that having options for transgender people is important. Regardless of how you feel about transvestism as a whole, it is important to consider their needs as they are a part of our society and deserve to be treated as equal members. Personally, sharing a bathroom with a transgender person does not concern me.

My second point is that there are people who I very much do not want to share a bathroom with. Gender neutral bathrooms allow anyone to go anywhere. This means that potential sex offenders can legally enter restrooms previously meant for the opposite sex. That is absolutely terrifying.

We are thus faced with two important yet opposing sets of information. There is no perfect solution, but I have a potential idea. What if stores and other public places were to provide three restrooms? There would be a men's room, a women's room, and a neutral room. The third could either be full-sized or single-person, depending on how individual business owners gauge the size of the demand. I am aware that this would cost a good deal of money, but so would lawsuits regarding sexual assault.

Having a third bathroom gives an option to those who do not feel that they fit perfectly into one gender, and it also gives an option to those who are not comfortable with the idea. It would be unfair to tamper with the rights of a community which holds a strong presence in our nation, but it would be equally unfair to compromise the safety of all public restroom users. Again, there is no perfect solution, but in my not quite professional opinion there needs to be an answer somewhere in between the two extreme sides of this issue.