After months of deliberation, the Republican governor of Massachusetts, Charlie Baker, said Tuesday he would sign a bill that gives transgender individuals nondiscrimination protections in public accommodations if it reaches his desk, reports Joshua Miller.
“We’ve certainly listened to a variety of points of view from many sides and have said, from the beginning, that we don’t want people to be discriminated against,” Baker said in an interview with The Boston Globe. “If the House bill were to pass in its current form, yeah, I would sign it.”
The bill, approved by the Senate and set to be passed by the House on Wednesday, would protect transgender people from discrimination in barber shops, malls, music halls, restaurants, and other public accommodations — and would allow people to use the restrooms and locker rooms that match their gender identity.
During his failed gubernatorial bid in 2010, Baker opposed a transgender nondiscrimination bill and promised to veto the legislation, though in 2011 he supported a different trans civil rights bill that excluded public accommodations.
Asked Tuesday if his new stance is flip-flopping, Baker said he is not, arguing that “the legislation that was passed in 2011 was a lot different than the legislation that was before the body in 2010. And the legislation that I’m taking about, the House version, is different than that as well.”
When times change, politicians adapt. This is a very positive sign for transgender rights.