OUT OF LEFT FIELD: Bathroom bigotry was wrong then and now

James Fujita.jpg

I found myself thinking about “whites-only” and “colored” bathrooms recently.

How on Earth did anybody ever think that was a good idea?

Imagine trying to explain the concept to space aliens: Years ago, human beings, on the basis of absolutely zero scientific evidence whatsoever, decided that certain members of their species were less worthy than other, more pale-skinned members of the exact same species.

I found myself thinking about “whites-only” and “colored” bathrooms recently.

How on Earth did anybody ever think that was a good idea?

Imagine trying to explain the concept to space aliens: Years ago, human beings, on the basis of absolutely zero scientific evidence whatsoever, decided that certain members of their species were less worthy than other, more pale-skinned members of the exact same species.

Using this as a flimsy excuse, the Deep South then proceeded to separate out (or “segregate”) everything from buses to houses to schools on the basis of race. This included such mundane items as drinking fountains and bathrooms. It would sound far-fetched if it hadn’t actually happened.

There was never any reasonable justification for such actions.  It was never constitutional. You can try to explain it by saying that people were more racist back then, but that is just another excuse.  It doesn’t explain why some people were so racist; nor does it explain how people managed to break free from this bigoted mindset. (Hint: it took a lot of pushing, speeches, marches and political action.)

This wasn’t just a momentary, passing thing, either. Segregation lasted for 100 years — from the Civil War until the Civil Rights Era — and some people continued to fight to preserve white privilege right up until the very end (and a few still do to this day).

The United States of America is a great nation, but we have to admit that our nation did some dumb things in the past. It’s tough to swallow, but it’s true.

And we continue to do some dumb things even now.

Yes, I am talking about anti-gay activity and especially the infamous transgender bathroom ban.  Is this as bad as segregated bathrooms?  Maybe not.

But the same principles still apply.  The moral, ethical and legal dilemma is the same. People are being treated differently because of who they are. This is mostly happening in the same states that supported segregation. The excuses behind these actions are as flimsy and illogical as ever.

These new attempts at discrimination do not combat any known threat.  There is no scientific connection between transgender people and sexual deviancy, or between gays and deviancy.  In fact, the opposite is true — sexual predators are more likely to be heterosexual than gay, lesbian or trans.

There isn’t even a decent way to enforce the bathroom ban.

All that this accomplishes is to treat a minority group as second-class citizens.  Welcome to the new segregation. Gay is the new black.

Despite all of this, gay people have made great strides in recent years. Their march toward tolerance and equality echoes that of previous civil rights victories.  This is a good thing for our nation.

Unfortunately, not everyone sees it that way. There has been pushback.

Hopefully, we are seeing the last, final gasps of the bigoted past. In the future, people will see the bathroom ban as just another ridiculous version of the “whites-only” bathroom.  It was wrong then and it’s wrong now.

James Fujita is a former GVN news editor. He works for the Visalia Times-Delta in California’s Central Valley. Fujita can be contacted at jim61773@yahoo.com