Wyoming Governor Mark Gordon has quietly signed a law that effectively turns encountering a trans person into a legal cause for a lawsuit. The so-called “Protecting Women’s Privacy in Public Spaces Act” allows people to sue if they come across a transgender person in multi-occupancy restrooms or changing areas in government-run buildings, including public universities and state prisons.
The bill, House Bill 72, defines “opposite sex” strictly by reproductive anatomy and goes into effect on July 1. While it excludes K-12 schools, it covers spaces such as the University of Wyoming, community colleges, and state-run prisons. Local jails, however, are exempt from this policy, which raises questions about its true intent.
Republican Representative Martha Lawley, the bill’s sponsor, claims it’s about “protecting women’s privacy” in restrooms, locker rooms, and correctional facilities. But let’s be real—this is another thinly veiled attack on trans people. The legislation provides a legal route for discrimination, allowing anyone who feels “uncomfortable” to take legal action against a government entity for failing to keep trans individuals out of these spaces. “Reasonable steps” for enforcement include posting signs and enacting policies restricting trans access—basically, state-sanctioned segregation.
The ACLU of Wyoming wasted no time slamming the law, comparing it to past efforts to exclude marginalized groups from public spaces. “Like previous efforts to expel people of color, people with disabilities, and others from communal spaces, these arguments for privacy just mask a fear of difference,” the organization stated. They warned that targeting trans people’s fundamental rights is a slippery slope, affecting everyone’s liberties in the long run.
Lawley, ever the champion of “women’s rights,” is also behind a bill expanding Wyoming’s already restrictive trans athlete ban, which currently applies to grades 7-12, to college sports. And if that weren’t enough, she also spearheaded the latest attack on abortion access, pushing for unnecessary regulations designed to shut down the state’s only full-service abortion clinic.
Let’s be clear: this bill isn’t about privacy or safety—it’s about control. Wyoming’s GOP-led legislature is following the right-wing playbook: targeting trans people, restricting reproductive rights, and using fear tactics to justify discrimination. While courts have struck down similar laws in other states, it’s only a matter of time before this one faces a legal challenge. In the meantime, Wyoming’s LGBTQ community is left to navigate yet another hostile attack on their rights.