Midwest Chick's Place

Tennessee seems to be leading the way in certain ways that, although may seem small, actually have downstream consequences.

Tennessee Gov. Bill Lee signed state bill S.B. 0468, also known as the “Women’s Safety and Protection Act,” into law on May 22. 

According to the bill summary, the new legislation, “clarifies and reconciles the meaning of sex, female, male, and related terms in state law to provide protections for women and girls against sexual assault, harassment, and violence in correctional facilities, juvenile detention facilities, domestic violence shelters, dormitories, and restrooms, or where women have been traditionally afforded safety and protection from acts of abuse committed by biological men.”

The bill summary is pretty strong and the last sentence actually bothers me because it has shades of ‘me too’. Especially because it was women who allowed this to go get to the place where it is today.

The bill is unfortunately necessary due to the excesses in other states, but also creates a legal loophole: “an individual who suffers, or is likely to suffer, from direct or indirect harm resulting from a violation of this bill to assert a cause of action for appropriate relief.”

So their courts are going to be busy once this thing goes into effect.