Photographed by Lily Nguyen.
by Emmanuellla Desruisseaux and Lily Nguyen
The University of Houston closed several gender‑neutral bathrooms this week to comply with Texas Bill 8, the “Women’s Privacy Act,” which requires restroom use based on sex assigned at birth.
The law applies to public buildings statewide and allows institution fines up to $25,000 for violations, prompting UH to convert three gender‑neutral restrooms, including one in the Graduate College of Social Work.
Alec Jerome, a nonbinary graduate psychology student, says the closures leave them without a restroom option that aligns with their identity or daily needs on campus.
“I’m a trans student. I just transferred here this semester, and having that welcoming sense taken away is saddening and frustrating,” Jerome said in an interview.
The temporary signs marking the converted bathrooms haven’t lasted long. Several were torn down, and one sign’s hinge was found ripped off entirely.
A courtesy image published by the Houston Chronicle shows the women’s restroom sign still mounted on the wall before its removal.
Jerome says they also recently walked past the bathrooms and noticed no signs at all, learning afterward that students had been removing them in protest.
“Today, I walked past gender‑neutral bathrooms and didn’t see any signs, so I didn’t know students were retaliating. I think that’s good,” said Jerome.
Students of different genders are still using the restroom as they had before the policy change, despite nearby sex‑segregated options being available.
UH officials plan for permanent signage to replace the temporary notices, which were repeatedly removed, with no comments on student concerns or the ongoing pushback.
Texas is currently one of 21 states that has enacted laws banning gender-neutral bathrooms, with Kansas and Utah being the only other states that have imposed penalties on institutions that provide them.
Houston Newsroom 
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