Arkansas Governor Sarah Huckabee Sanders has signed a law restricting transgender individuals from using the public school restroom that matches their gender identity. Â This move makes Arkansas the fourth state to enact such restrictions and the first of several expected to pass such bans this year. Â The law will take effect later this summer, and it applies to multi-person restrooms and locker rooms at public schools and charter schools serving prekindergarten through 12th grade. Â The legislation comes amid a surge of bills nationwide targeting the trans community.
Many states have filed proposals to limit or ban gender-affirming care for minors, ban transgender girls from school sports, and restrict drag shows. Â Transgender people are facing increasingly hostile rhetoric at statehouses, and Arkansas has proposed a bill that imposes criminal penalties for using public restrooms. Â The bill is expected to allow someone to be charged with a misdemeanor sexual indecency with a child if they use a public restroom or changing room of the opposite sex when a minor is present. Â The American Civil Liberties Union of Arkansas has criticized the bill, stating that it refuses to respect the rights and humanity of transgender people and Arkansans.