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Here's some great news ahead of PRIDE weekend: the New York City Council voted on Tuesday to require business owners to take down gendered signs on one-person bathrooms starting January 1, the New York Daily News reports.
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The legislation overwhelmingly passed, 47-2, and will help curb discrimination against transgender people and help them feel more comfortable. The bill came after Mayor Bill de Blasio ordered city-owned buildings to allow people to use whichever bathroom matches their gender identity.
"Most New Yorkers take their unfettered access to bathrooms for granted, yet every single day transgender and gender non-conforming individuals must grapple with the fact that their choices may lead to harassment or worse," said Councilman Danny Dromm. ""Designating single-stall bathrooms as all gender is an easy way to create a welcoming environment for transgender and gender non-conforming individuals," he said. "As an added bonus, anyone who is looking for an unoccupied bathroom will now have more options." The bill also comes as a response to North Carolina's recently passed law designating people must use the gendered bathroom that matches their birth certificate. "Their recently enacted anti-LGBT law belongs in the toilet," Dromm said.