https://www.austinchronicle.com/daily/qmmunity/2017-02-22/i-pee-with-lgbt/

I Pee With LGBT

By Courtney Naquin, February 22, 2017, 11:12am, Qmmunity

Trans rights activists and allies around Texas are “rolling up their sleeves, pulling down their pants, and peeing with LGBT” after Austin native and renowned director Richard Linklater collaborated with ACLU of Texas, GSD&M, and Legacy Community Health on a commercial denouncing Texas’ proposed bathroom bill.

Linklater, the Austin film director of Dazed and Confused, Bernie, and Boyhood filmed the commercial for I Pee With LGBT, a nonprofit organization working to protect the rights of Texas' transgender and gender nonconforming communities from this harmful and transphobic legislation.

The commercial, Taking a Seat, Making a Stand, directly targets Senate Bill 6, also called the Texas Privacy Act. If passed, SB 6 would require all of Texas’ public buildings, public companies, and public schools to prevent transgender people from using bathrooms and locker rooms that coincide with their gender identity.

Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick, the man responsible for bringing this bathroom nonsense to Texas – has said, “Privacy and safety is our first priority, not political correctness.” Since the bill’s filing on Jan. 5, Patrick has continued to describe SB 6 as a bill designed to protect women especially because “we see them as vulnerable,” he told alleged hate group, Family Research Council earlier this month.

Linklater’s commercial responded to the politician’s bigotry by saying, “This is not a privacy issue, and we know how to take care of ourselves.” The ad also addresses how, if passed, SB 6 will affect transgender youth and students. “Money should be spent keeping kids in schools, but not out of bathrooms,” declared one woman in the commercial.

The minute-long public service announcement asks people to act in solidarity with the trans community and let state lawmakers know that the Texas Privacy Act is an unprecedented act of discrimination. If passed, SB 6 will go into effect this fall. More information on how to get involved can be found at ipeewithlgbt.org