Why This Photo of a Young Girl Might Make You Rethink Everything You Know About Public Bathrooms

If this was your daughter, would you be comfortable sending her into a men's bathroom?

"Neither would I," wrote photographer Meg Bitton, who posed the question alongside a portrait of a young girl . . . who happens to be transgender.

Bitton's Facebook post is the latest statement in the ongoing national debate about gender-specific public restrooms, and it's on the heels of controversial legislation in North Carolina that requires those in the transgender community to use bathrooms that reflect the sex written on their birth certificates, not the gender with which they identify.

The girl in the image is Corey Maison, who made headlines last year when her mom surprised her with the news that she was approved for hormone therapy, and Bitton spelled out just what such a law means for the 14-year-old.

"She was born with male anatomy but identifies as female, and under the new laws, she would be forced to use the men's room," Bitton wrote. "Be fair. Be kind. Be empathetic. Treat others how you would like to be treated."

The post has accumulated 52,000 "likes," nearly 30,000 shares, and more than 12,000 comments, both in agreement and fervently opposed. Some have been so negative, Bitton considered removing the post completely: "I decided to let Corey's mother make that call and she asked for it to stay to raise awareness, so it will."