Hundreds gathered across Boston’s City Hall plaza this past Sunday at a “Rally for Transgender Rights.” The rally was called by Boston Mayor Marty Walsh in support of upholding transgender rights threatened by the referendum on the upcoming Nov. 6 midterm elections in Massachusetts.
The referendum would repeal the Bay State law prohibiting discrimination in public accommodations on the basis of gender identity. This law protects transgender people from discrimination and harassment in public places such as restaurants, retail shops, and medical offices.
These are basic civil rights that every person in Massachusetts requires and deserves; a repeal of one person’s rights is a repeal of all of our rights. That’s why it’s essential that everyone in Massachusetts vote Yes on Question 3 to uphold these rights.
As the Boston Globe put it in its endorsement of the Yes on 3 campaign:
“Unlike some other ballot questions Massachusetts voters have faced over the years, this is not a complex issue. What repeal opponents are pursuing is a solution in search of a problem. At a time when transgender rights are being threatened nationally in other areas, such as the military or health care access, now is the time to affirm equal rights protections for transgender individuals in Massachusetts by voting yes on 3.”
The rally was a partnership among Pride at Work Eastern Massachusetts, Bay State Stonewall Democrats, Massachusetts Transgender Political Coalition, Boston Democratic Socialists of America, MassEquality, National Center for Transgender Equality, Trans Lifeline, BAGLY, Boston Mayor Martin Walsh and Freedom For All Massachusetts, which is spearheading the Yes on 3 campaign.
To learn more about the Yes on 3 campaign, visit freedommassachusetts.org.
