SAN DIEGO — San Diego County Supervisors have tentatively approved a move to end discrimination against all women, including transgender women and non-binary people.
The aim of this county ordinance is to eliminate discrimination against women.
Dozens of enraged opponents argued that because the ordinance also includes transgender women, they believe it would end up hurting women: providing access to women's shelters, bathrooms and locker rooms to transgender women.
"All of you will be erasing women," said opponent Diane Chapman. "It will endanger our girls in the very places they should feel safe and thrive,"
"Folks, we don't need or want little girls in fear that anyone who identifies as a woman can now enter what once was a sacred private space: a bathroom or a locker room," said Dran Reese.
Opponents of this ordinance, which is based on a United Nations treaty first adopted back in 1979, said that it discriminates against the women it is meant to protect.
"It allows pushing real women and girls aside from the tops of podiums or even the final 16 to be replaced by transgenders," said opponent Mary Dee. "That is not progress: that is pernicious prejudice!"
"No amount of lipstick or a dress is going to make a man look like me!" added Esther Valdez-Clayton. "These hips don't lie, like Shakira said!"
The goal of this ordinance is to define what constitutes discrimination, and develop policies on a county-wide level to end it.
It has already been adopted by other major cities, including Los Angeles and San Francisco, although on the national level it has not been adopted by the federal government.
Supporters of this ordinance say this move is crucial to moving our region closer to gender equity.
"Inclusivity is a must and our transgender, gender-nonconforming and inter-sex community members have been silenced, excluded and oppressed for too long," said supporter Judith Howell.
"Trans and gender non-conforming women are women. Period. Full stop," said Melissa Thomas. "All women are vulnerable to the harms caused by gender inequities."
The ordinance passed 3 to 2, with Supervisors Joel Anderson and Jim Desmond voting against it.
"In my opinion, it is taking away from biological women and that in itself is discriminatory towards women," Desmond said before casting his vote.
Supervisor Nora Vargas had originally introduced this move.
"While there is no doubt that progress has been made toward addressing existing issues, the truth is, there's more work to be done to ensure we eliminate all forms of discrimination against all women," Vargas said.
This was the first reading of the ordinance. The County Board of Supervisors will vote again to formally adopt it at the May 10 meeting.
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