to think this is sexual harassment not "an equal opportunities issue"?

[SwissWank]

If I am expecting a vulva and in a private room am met with a penis...

I don't have to touch your penis, surely?

www.buzzfeed.com/lanesainty/trans-woman-brazilian-wax?utm_term=.wn9yL7dKK#.aoLOxVqZZ

Female penis.....a Wenis? Shenis? Ladynis? hmm......interesting.......

If the salon had asked Karen if they had male genitalia they would have probably said no.
Because Karen will think they have a female penis

No such thing. A penis is a penis.
Cock and Bollocks is MALE.

Why should the salon ask?! they do female waxing, on female fannys, a penis is not a vulva however you dress it up and im sure i read thag they state they do not wax male genitalia, which this person has. 'karen' knew full well what they were doing.

Maybe she thought her penis was female???

Isn't it a bit like turning up at a gynaecologist and complaining because they refuse to use a speculum on your (absent) vagina?

I think not quite tbh, because the client wanted body hair removed, which he/she had. But my SDSis is a beautician, and says female and male intimate waxings are different. If the person who was doing the waxing hadn't been trained to do the 'back, sack, crack' they could have caused damage.

The customer was too shy to mention his/her genital arrangements on the phone but was happy to strip off once there? I think some people do this stuff on purpose for a) 'awareness raising' and b) financial compensation.

And I do think we are probably not far off the story of a transwoman turning up for a smear test and getting angry when the nurse won't mime carrying one out.

No win for the salon, there, is there?

If they don't ask what genital configuration they might be presented with - BIGOTS!

If they did gently ask if they should be expecting to see a hoo ha or a wee wee - BIGOTS!

I think it's very probable that Karen does believe that their genitals are female, and therein lies the problem with self-identification.

I do feel for the therapist - if you're expecting a vulva, then seeing a penis instead is being flashed. It wasn't up to her to find out, it was up to Karen to explain it - how could it be otherwise? I smell set-up.

noiwont - yes I get that and he would ask but what I'm saying is he could ask for that but he walks in and he's a man. If that makes sense. Even trying to book it would be hard as he's a male... Just wondering that's all. Because "I'm a man but I need a female wax" is tricky

Yes Repent, or suing Boots for not giving them Feminax Ultra for period pain because its not licensed for imaginary periods

Hollin no it isnt

"i have female genitalia, do you wax them?" is all that needs to be said, nothing tricky about that, its very simple

How utterly ridiculous.

She phoned the salon and told them she was transgender, she should have made it a priority to tell them she had a fucking penis!

What the heck did she expect when the poor unsuspecting woman was presented with a penis!!

When most people hear 'transgender' they assume the person has actually, you know, transitioned!

Bake maybe a coy "oh gosh, ill just move this small mole out of the way as its dangerous to wax over them" sort of comment

or "have you tried nail varnish or tying floss around it?" (inspired by a skin tag thread im on)

The staff knew when she came in for the appointment that she was trans. It didn't seem to occur to anyone to establish what that meant in her case

How? By asking her if she had her penis cut off? Paris Lees has built an entire career around how it is never acceptable to ask trans people what is in their pants.

Sounds like the poor receptionist probably thought she was being nice, non discriminatory etc and assumed that someone calling/emailing and saying they were transgender and would like a brazilian would actually have the relevant body parts (or the closest thing to them!)

Karen is in the wrong here.

Although using the term "male genitalia" is clearly what she finds offensive which I agree if she's transgendered then her genitalia isn't "male". The salon should have stated that they don't deal with "penis or scrotums regardless of gender" instead.

There's a lot of insensitive shit heads on this thread But Karen is a cunt if she flashes someone and then sues. She should have 100% disclosed that she was pre-op and she knows it.

Karen was "insulted" by the use of "male genitals" to describe their penis and balls.

Karen "felt ugly"

The name "brazilica" suggests they specialise in Brazilian waxes (which is only possible on a woman), and from the other information, it seems waxing is the only service they offer. It's like Karen going for a smear test and complaining they wouldn't perform a prostate exam.

At best Karen was chasing publicity, daily mail sad faces and compensation. At worst, they got off on the idea of flashing the beautician.

-YourNewspaper. How is a cock and balls not "male"? How would you describe it then ?

"pre-operative transgender women."

So men then.

"No win for the salon, there, is there?

If they don't ask what genital configuration they might be presented with - BIGOTS!

If they did gently ask if they should be expecting to see a hoo ha or a wee wee - BIGOTS!"

But you don't know that!

I just have a different opinion - I think if someone, possibly someone not comfortable with their own body, summoned up the courage to call up, ask for a wax, and make the statement that they are transgender - that might be all she could manage, you know? The salon didn't even think to ask what that might have meant? They could indeed have asked gently! But they didn't.

DeadGood

Yes, could have been the case.

How do you explain her behaviour since then?

Why the fuck would someone with male genitals be going to a place that's purpose is to provide a procedure that can only be done on women? And all the focus on their humiliation - not a thought for the woman who was unexpectedly exposed to their dick in a small room, and a thought for how that might have impacted her.

Karen is a shit stirrer at best, pervert at worst.

Karen can claim to feel like a woman all she wants, but she has a male body. The salon was not equipped to wax a male body. Hence, this is not a transphobic issue, but a health and safety issue.

I can understand that there was some miscommunication on the phone. However, once it became apparent that Karen was pre-op, that should have been the end of it.

Not being familiar with beauty salons, I thought they just did all kinds of waxing, arms, vulvae, chins, scrota etc.
Is it really the case that a penis-owner books their appt because they are a pervert and want to get it felt up, whereas a vulva owner books their appt because they want a tidy pubis? I'm confused (moreso than usual).
While we're at it, where do we draw the line with micropenises and megaloclitorises? The latter is often bigger (when erect) than the former. Especially when being 'felt up'.

How do you gently enquire about a person's genital configuration?

The salon states in their literature that they do not wax male genitalia, so Karen was well aware of that fact prior to making the appointment for a type of waxing which can only be performed on female genitalia.

Karen is also well aware that they are in possession of male genitalia and that a brazilian wax is only performed on female genitalia.

Karen set this up deliberately and certainly managed to summon up the courage to tell the world about it and complain in order to receive compensation and an alteration in the wording of the literature provided by the clinic.

I feel so sorry for the owner of this salon, the therapist and the receptionist who have not done anything wrong.

I hope this Karen understands that actions like hers set back the trans community by some way. She got her £1000 compensation, but at what cost for the wider community?