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‘This is a small step in proving that Ohio is a state of common sense and leadership’ 

The University of Cincinnati has installed “biological men” and “biological women” bathroom signs to comply with a new state law that takes effect this month.

The university put up the new signs “last week in its residence halls and some other on-campus buildings in response to the passage of a law that restricts bathroom use in public and private K-12 schools and colleges to members of the same ‘biological sex,'” NBC reported.

The so-called “bathroom bill” requires all K-12 public schools and all public and private universities in the state “to label all of their multi-person bathrooms, locker rooms, shower rooms and changing rooms as being only for either males or females,” Cleveland.com reported, adding the “text of the legislation doesn’t include any penalties for violating the new rules, nor any enforcement provisions.”

“As a public institution, we are following the law and seeking to meet our mission to create an environment where we provide opportunity, develop educated and engaged citizens and enrich our city, state and world,” University of Cincinnati spokesperson M.B. Reilly told NBC.

A picture of the new signage went viral in recent days due to a post on the University of Cincinnati’s Reddit page.

The development has upset many transgender students and others who support their rights, NBC reported:

Several transgender students at the University of Cincinnati told NBC News they expect the new bathroom law will make their daily lives more difficult, forcing them to walk longer distances to find restrooms to use.

“I had a panic attack for the first time in a while,” Corvo Hopkins, a 21-year-old junior who is transgender, said in a phone interview. “I haven’t been able to think about anything else.”

Hopkins added that the new bathroom signs send a message to trans students that “we’re not valued, they don’t want us here, and that living on campus, we’re not safe.”

But others stand behind the new law.

“The bathroom bill going into effect is a victory for privacy, safety, and common sense. Ohio is standing up for women and girls by ensuring that bathrooms and locker rooms remain single-sex spaces,” Republican Ohio House Majority Whip Nick Santucci told Fox News Digital.

“…This is a small step in proving that Ohio is a state of common sense and leadership.”

The Associated Press reported that “Oberlin has published policies saying the school will comply with the law taking effect Tuesday and is offering counseling and a chance for students to ask to move out of their dorms.”

Editor’s note: A few days after publication, President Neville Pinto told protesters at the Board of Trustees meeting that the signs were an “error,” but did not state when or if the signs will be changed back, the Cincinatti Enquirer reported.

MORE: George Mason backtracks, says female students can criticize tampons in men’s bathrooms

IMAGE: r/uCinci Reddit screenshot

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