New York kicks off transgender bathroom campaign

In New York City, it’s not how he or she looks like. It’s how he or she sees himself or herself. He or she can use any toilet of his or her choice. Photo shows a campaign poster in New York promoting the use of toilets regardless of sex but according to how a person considers his or her gender. SCREENGRAB FROM NEW YORK CITY FACEBOOK PAGE

NEW YORK, United States — New York kicked off a campaign Monday to promote transgender people’s rights to use bathrooms that match their gender identity, a heated topic in the United States.

The campaign follows Mayor Bill de Blasio’s executive order in March mandating city facilities allow people to choose restrooms based on the gender they identify with.

Concretely, this means that a transgender person born male but who identifies as a woman may use the women’s bathroom, and vice versa.

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“Use the restroom consistent with who you are. Look past pink and blue,” read campaign advertisements posted in the city’s subways, bus stops, phone booths and published in free newspapers.

Featuring transgender New Yorkers, the campaign also includes videos that will air on social media, as well as the municipal television channel NYC TV.

“No one deserves to be denied access to bathrooms or discriminated against for being who they are,” de Blasio said in a statement.

“Every New Yorker has the legal right to use the bathroom consistent with their gender identity, no questions asked — and these powerful ads affirm this right.”

Restrooms and gender identity have recently prompted fierce debate in the United States.

In late March, North Carolina’s governor signed a controversial bill blocking cities from permitting transgender individuals to choose which public bathroom to use.

A string of high-profile entertainers and big companies joined activists in denouncing the measure, pulling the plug on events and investments in the state.

The law has also led to a showdown between the governor and the US federal government, with both sides filing dueling lawsuits.

President Barack Obama’s administration recently released federal guidelines directing public schools to let transgender students use the bathroom of their choice, in a move that prompted a separate lawsuit.