Vote On November 6th

Vote On November 6^th
If you live in Massachusetts you also have a very important question to vote on Question 3.

Question #3
Do you approve of a law summarized below, which was approved by the House of Representatives and the Senate on July 7, 2016?

SUMMARY
This law adds gender identity to the list of prohibited grounds for discrimination in places of public accommodation, resort, or amusement. Such grounds also include race, color, religious creed, national origin, sex, disability, and ancestry. A “place of public accommodation, resort or amusement” is defined in existing law as any place that is open to and accepts or solicits the patronage of the general public, such as hotels, stores, restaurants, theaters, sports facilities, and hospitals. “Gender identity” is defined as a person’s sincerely held gender-related identity, appearance, or behavior, whether or not it is different from that traditionally associated with the person’s physiology or assigned sex at birth.

This law prohibits discrimination based on gender identity in a person’s admission to or treatment in any place of public accommodation. The law requires any such place that has separate areas for males and females (such as restrooms) to allow access to and full use of those areas consistent with a person’s gender identity. The law also prohibits the owner or manager of a place of public accommodation from using advertising or signage that discriminates on the basis of gender identity.

This law directs the state Commission Against Discrimination to adopt rules or policies and make recommendations to carry out this law. The law also directs the state Attorney General to issue regulations or guidance on referring for legal action any person who asserts gender identity for an improper purpose.

The provisions of this law governing access to places of public accommodation are effective as of October 1, 2016. The remaining provisions are effective as of July 8, 2016.

A YES VOTE would keep in place the current law, which prohibits discrimination on the basis of gender identity in places of public accommodation.

A NO VOTE would repeal this provision of the public accommodation law.

WBUR just released a new poll about the ballot questions…

Ballot Q On Transgender Protections Law May Be Confusing. But Voters Seem To Get It
By Steve Koczela
September 25, 2018

Three ballot questions will go before Massachusetts voters this November. Question 3 asks whether voters approve of a state law allowing transgender people to use public accommodations that match their gender identity. But do voters understand what voting 'yes' or 'no' means?
[…]
In most ballot questions, voting 'yes' means making a change of some kind to state law, while voting 'no' means preserving the status quo. Question 3 is the reverse: a 'yes' vote approves of the 2016 law that offers protections for transgender people in public accommodations, while a 'no' vote disapproves and aims to remove it from the books.

The WBUR poll tried to capture that confusion by first asking likely Massachusetts voters the question as close as possible to how it will appear on the ballot.

To test whether voters were indeed confused about how to vote, the poll then included a follow-up question, restating the aim of Question 3 in simpler terms. Looking at the two questions together revealed most voters seem to grasp the meaning of a 'yes' vote versus a 'no' vote.
[…]
About 7 in 10 voters answered 'yes' on the ballot question to approve of the law. On the follow-up, about the same number said transgender people should be able to use public accommodations in keeping with their gender identity.

In all, 85 percent 'yes' voters answered the follow-up question the same way. There was a little more confusion among 'no' voters. If the poll showed a closer contest, some of that confusion might affect the outcome. But, right now, 'yes' is up by a wide margin.

We cannot sit on our laurels!

Even with 71% of the voters supporting the public accommodations for us, we need to make sure they get out to vote on November 6^th. Nationwide this election will pivot on who can get their voters out and vote, the 2016 elections saw 46% of the voters not voting!