The day after Christmas, the Washington State Human Rights Commission quietly instituted a new set of policies requiring all public buildings to allow men and women to use the gender-specific restroom of their choice. Had no idea that happened? You're not the only one. These rules were passed so silently that, when I first saw an article about it, I thought it was a joke.

After doing more research, however, I found out that it was in fact true. The most disturbing aspect of the new policy is not the ideology (I'm not here to take a stance on gay rights or anything), but the fact that it feels like a rough draft with a million loopholes.

So what is the new rule?

1. All public buildings (including schools) must allow people to choose their restroom and locker room based upon sexual orientation, not genitalia. The original draft of the policy exempted schools from having students pick their preferred restroom; however, the final draft says that schools have to follow the new rule too. This has naturally caused some backlash as many parents and students feel uncomfortable with the idea that boys have free access to the girls restroom and locker room and vice versa. According to the Department of Justice, one in two rape victims are 18 or younger. With those statistics in mind, it seems perfectly natural for people to be a little nervous about opening the bathroom doors of both genders to anyone who claims to identify as lesbian, gay, trans, etc.

2. Don't ask questions. When in doubt, don't speak at all. The problem is, the policy makes it illegal to "ask unwelcome personal questions about an individual's sexual orientation, gender expression or gender identity, or transgender status." Unfortunately the policy doesn't define what constitutes an "unwelcome" question, so it's probably better to keep your mouth shut so you're not at risk of being sued. It's also illegal to accidentally use the wrong pronoun when referring to a "he" even though you honestly thought "he" was a "she." While I understand that it isn't nice to ask awkward questions, the problem with banning them (aside from that pesky first amendment) is if--hypothetically speaking--you were in the ladies' room and a man there was getting a little too *close,* if you asked him to stop and back off, all he would have to do is claim that he's transgender, and suddenly you would be at legal fault, and he could legally sue you. I know the scenario may sound ridiculous, and "oh no, there are laws against that," but think about it. According to the U.S. Department of Justice, less than 26 percent of sexual assaults are reported. And, on top of that, one in four rapes take place in public areas including parking garages, locker rooms, public restrooms... you get the picture. Yes, there are laws against sexual harassment, but laws still haven't stopped sexual harassment from happening.

3. If you feel uncomfortable, it's a personal problem. I totally understand wanting to be welcoming to all people, I really and truly do. However, these rules don't make any sense to me. We are making a large group of people uncomfortable and putting them at high risk in order to be more inclusive to those with different sexual identities. It seems like, no matter what, someone is going to feel uncomfortable. Discomfort is manageable. Danger is not. There have been multiple cases in the past where men gained access to women's locker rooms or restrooms and used that access for very perverted purposes. While some of those sex offenders have been caught, having an open door policy seems highly unwise. Many women who have been sexually assaulted in the past have expressed their concern and discomfort with the new policy. If the Human Rights Commission finds a way to close the loophole where anyone who claims to be anything they want can easily gain access to these places, then we can proceed with discussion about creating new rules. However, I find no excuse for opening the door to sex offenders who merely claim to be gay, trans, bi, etc.

I'm not here to condemn the LBGTQ movement. I just want to know why the Washington State Human Rights Commission adopted a rule that is essentially an open door with a welcome sign to all types of sexual predators. There are too many loopholes in the policy for it to be safely adopted.

I don't have any quick solutions to offer because I believe that this is a very complex issue. I'm just saying that if you give predators an open door, those who want to will walk right through and do whatever they want. Though I understand that we need to be loving and welcoming to people with all different types of sexual identities, I don't think this policy is ready to be used. It is too open to be abused by the wrong people.

Read the policy here.