Crowds overflow Nebraska State Capitol to testify on bill requiring gender-specific spaces

LINCOLN, Neb. (KLKN) – Lawmakers heard hours of testimony Friday about a bill that strictly defines male and female.

Legislative Bill 89 would require schools to assign people to sports teams, restrooms and locker rooms based on their gender at birth.

It would also make state agencies have one bathroom for males and one bathroom for females and make them follow that same distinction.

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The bill sparked a fierce debate over its impact on women’s spaces and transgender rights.

Lines wrapped around the Capitol, with both those for and against the bill.

“You don’t have to like my lifestyle,” said Devin, a transgender man against LB 89. “But what you do have to do is understand that I have the right as an American to be whoever I want to be that’s not harming anybody.”

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Supporters like Sen. Kathleen Kauth, who introduced the Stand With Women Act, said it is critical to protect women and girls in spaces like restrooms, locker rooms and athletic teams.

Even Gov. Jim Pillen made an appearance in support of the bill.

“It’s simply saying boys use boys’ restrooms, men use men’s restrooms, girls use girls’ restrooms, women use women’s restroom, boys go in boys’ locker room and women go in women’s lockers room,” he said. “It ain’t any more complicated than that.”

And Tim McCoyle, a gay man, said he’s for LB 89 because he said women need to be protected.

“If we’re not protecting every member of our society no matters who’s feelings get hurt, then we got a problem,” he said. “We got a transgender athletic team, I don’t care. But when it comes to women, they need to be protected, especially girls.”

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But opponents of the bill argue it targets transgender people, specifically students, and undermines their ability to feel included in school environments.

“The bathroom one is really annoying ’cause half the time, I can say, I’m a trans boy and normally I don’t use the men’s bathroom anyway just ’cause I get people giving weird faces,” Cici said.

The committee has not taken any action on the bill.

Similar legislation has failed before in Nebraska, but the votes have been close.