Seth Meyers explains Houston's anti-LGBT vote, debunks the transgender 'bathroom myth'
On Tuesday, voters in Houston shot down a city-wide anti-discrimination ordinance adopted by the City Council last year, apparently swayed by charges from opponents that it would allow creepy men to walk into women's restrooms. Seth Meyers took a closer look on Wednesday's Late Night, especially at the claim that anyone of any gender could have used any restroom. "The idea is known as the 'bathroom myth," he said, and "the law had nothing to do with that."
Meyers also ridiculed the idea that women's bathrooms are a great place to see "booty," as one opponent said, noting archly that the last place you'd want to see "booty" is in a restroom, because "that's when the booty is busy." But "more importantly, the idea that you could go into a bathroom and do anything other than use the toilet is already illegal in Houston," he pointed out, and has been since 1972. "Now, it would be wrong to paint Houston as an intolerant city — it's not fair," Meyers said, noting that the outgoing three-term mayor, Annise Parker, is openly gay. "So how could a city that elected a gay mayor vote against this law?" He didn't have a great answer, just a joke about falling asleep in church, but he did end with a warning to gay rights advocates — and cartoonists. Watch below. Peter Weber
The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.
Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
-
6 exquisite homes for skiersFeature Featuring a Scandinavian-style retreat in Southern California and a Utah abode with a designated ski room
-
Film reviews: ‘The Testament of Ann Lee,’ ’28 Years Later: The Bone Temple,’ and ‘Young Mothers’Feature A full-immersion portrait of the Shakers’ founder, a zombie virus brings out the best and worst in the human survivors, and pregnancy tests the resolve of four Belgian teenagers
-
Political cartoons for January 25Cartoons Sunday's political cartoons include a hot economy, A.I. wisdom, and more
-
‘One Battle After Another’ wins Critics Choice honorsSpeed Read Paul Thomas Anderson’s latest film, which stars Leonardo DiCaprio, won best picture at the 31st Critics Choice Awards
-
A peek inside Europe’s luxury new sleeper busThe Week Recommends Overnight service with stops across Switzerland and the Netherlands promises a comfortable no-fly adventure
-
Son arrested over killing of Rob and Michele ReinerSpeed Read Nick, the 32-year-old son of Hollywood director Rob Reiner, has been booked for the murder of his parents
-
Rob Reiner, wife dead in ‘apparent homicide’speed read The Reiners, found in their Los Angeles home, ‘had injuries consistent with being stabbed’
-
Hungary’s Krasznahorkai wins Nobel for literatureSpeed Read László Krasznahorkai is the author of acclaimed novels like ‘The Melancholy of Resistance’ and ‘Satantango’
-
Primatologist Jane Goodall dies at 91Speed Read She rose to fame following her groundbreaking field research with chimpanzees
-
Florida erases rainbow crosswalk at Pulse nightclubSpeed Read The colorful crosswalk was outside the former LGBTQ nightclub where 49 people were killed in a 2016 shooting
-
Trump says Smithsonian too focused on slavery's illsSpeed Read The president would prefer the museum to highlight 'success,' 'brightness' and 'the future'
