Vancouver transgender woman Norma Ballhorn has been fighting for the right to use the ladies restroom at three local bars. She filed a complaint against Legends Food & Fun Monday with the State Human Rights Commission for refusing her service after she tried to use the ladies restroom and said she is considering filing against Ice House and 3 Monkeys Pub. Photo

Vancouver resident Norma Ballhorn has worked hard to become a woman. She takes a concoction of hormones, changed her name from “Norman” to “Norma,” updated her driver’s license to reflect her female identity and wears clothing with feminine embellishments, such as butterfly sleeves. But Ballhorn, 56, still isn’t allowed to use the ladies room at three Clark County bars, she said.

“They’re using their right to refuse service to discriminate against me,” Ballhorn said.

She filed a complaint Monday against Legends Food & Fun with the State Human Rights Commission. She said she is considering filing complaints against Icehouse Bar & Grill and 3 Monkeys Pub on the same grounds.

“I’m trying to give them a chance to talk to me, give them information and maybe change their minds about me,” she said of Icehouse and 3 Monkeys.

Laura Lindstrand, a commission policy analyst, said the commission has received the complaint and assigned an investigator to it. Investigations typically take four to 12 months, she said.

While law doesn’t specifically address transgender use of public restrooms, the commission’s interpretation of the state’s freedom-from-discrimination law is that businesses are required to allow a person to use the restroom of the sex he or she identifies with, Lindstrand said.