Statement of the Boston Bar Association on Transgender Anti-Discrimination Bill

Today, Governor Charlie Baker signed an important civil rights bill, An Act Relative to Transgender Anti-Discrimination, which offers transgender people protections from discrimination at public accommodations like restaurants and malls, and allows people to use the restroom or locker room that matches their gender identity.

The Boston Bar Association supported enactment of this bill, as we did in 2011 with An Act Relative to Transgender Equal Rights, which secured protections for transgender people against discrimination in employment, housing, insurance, credit, and education.

Discrimination against individuals who are gender non-conforming is both dehumanizing and inconsistent with the bedrock principle of justice for all. We applaud Governor Baker and the Legislature for placing Massachusetts alongside 17 other states and the District of Columbia in taking this important step forward.