Any place that provides goods and services to the general public is considered a public accommodation.
This includes restaurants, grocery stores, health clinics, hospitals, health clubs, homeless shelters and most social services. Sadly, these establishments often discriminate against transgender and gender nonconforming people, including by refusing us service, treating us differently than our non-transgender peers, or subjecting us to harmful verbal and physical violence when we are simply trying to carry out daily activities like using the restroom. Over half of the transgender people surveyed in the 2011 National Transgender Discrimination survey reported being verbally harassed or disrespected in a place of public accommodation.
TLC Resources
Tools for Addressing Anti-Trans Discrimination
Other Resources
Gay and Transgender Discrimination Outside the Workplace: Why We Need Protections in Housing, Health Care, and Public Accommodations
A brief from the Center for American Progress that includes information about public accommodations discrimination faced by transgender people
Gendered Restrooms and Minority Stress: The Public Regulation of Gender and its Impact on Transgender People’s Lives
This study identifies the impact that transgender people’s negative experiences in gendered restrooms can have on their education, employment, health, and participation in public life.