Meet The Members Of WA Human Rights Commission (Transgender Bathroom Laws)

The Washington State Human Rights Commission was enacted by the Washington State Legislature in the 1940's and designed to handle issues of discrimination, especially when it involves state laws, policies and other legal procedures.

The Human Rights Commission, or HRC, has gone largely unnoticed except for a few noteable cases here and there, until December 2015.

That's when, on December 26th, the day after Christmas, the HRC enacted new policies regarding transgender bathrooms. All state and government buildings must allow people to use whichever bathroom or locker room they identify with as far as sexual orientation.

This law also applies to businesses who employ 10 or more people. And, it prohibits people, workers, or business owners from asking or questioning a person they see entering such facilities, about their purpose or choice of facilities. It also prohibits businesses from creating separate bathroom facilities, they must allow people to choose from men or women.

Not long after the Washington law was passed, other states began to move in that direction, and national retailer Target passed new transgender bathroom laws.

Who are the officials on the HRC who passed this law, that the legislature says was overstepping their bounds? Even state legislators have said the rules were enacted with virtually no public comment, hearings or publicity. Some said they didn't even know the Commission was considering such actions.   Here are the officials who created and passed the policies:

Executive Director Sharon Ortiz oversees the commission, and has worked for the HRC for 14 years.

Commissioner Chair of the Committee is Charlene Strong of Seattle. She was appointed to the HRC in 2009. The bulk of her past work is centered on the LGBT Movement and similar issues. Her term expires in 2017.

Other Commissioners include Clarence Henderson of Seattle, an attorney and noted civic leader, Lenore 3-Stars of Spokane, who specializes in Native American rights and issues, and litigator Skylee Sahlstrom of Seattle.  Henderson's term expires in 2017. The others term expirations were not listed.

These new laws have had an 'unintended' side effect. Across the country, including Tri-Cities, there have been dozens of incidents involving men who used the new law to gain access to women's dressing rooms, bathrooms and locker rooms for illicit purposes. Most of them have involved attempts to video or photograph female victims. Several women's sexual assault support groups immediately warned this would happen, but their pleas fell on deaf ears.

The State Senate attempted to pass legislation overriding the law, but it failed in the Legislature.

Contact information for the HRC can be obtained here, where citizens can voice their opinions (in a civil manner) about the new laws. Citizens can also give their input about whom they believe the Governor and officials should appoint to the HRC in the future.