To alert you to the fact that Topshop just changed its policy to let men into the women's changing rooms

[YouStoleTheBowlFromTheRoom]

Been made aware of this today: a 'gender fluid' man having a pop at Topshop because he wasn't allowed to use the women's changing rooms at their Manchester store:

twitter.com/travisalabanza/status/927198660089339904

Topshop have now been quoted as apologising to him, and saying they've changed their policy to get rid of sex-segregated changing rooms altogether.

Another shop to strike off the list. Am I the only one worried this is past the point of no return?

"...but do not use it as justification to insinuate that all/most men are sexual predators.."
But most sexual predators are men. Some women may be fine with losing their privacy, but I'm not. I don't want to be forced to share intimate spaces (loos, changing rooms etc) with males. And given the history of female sanitary facilities, and how lack of them is used in developing countries to exclude women and girls from education and employment:
www.pri.org/stories/2016-05-12/india-access-toilets-remains-huge-problem-worst-all-women-and-girls
we shouldn't be forced to pretend that gender-neutral is fine when for so many women and girls, that is not the case. How can we campaign for them to have what we are supposedly willing to give up without a fight????? Bugger that!

Doesn’t bother me in the slightest. If someone identifies as a woman or man how degrading must they feel if they are refused into a changing room? Not to mention embarrassed.

I see nothing wrong with gender neutral/mixed gender changing rooms provided there are also single gender changing areas. I for one do not want to bump into a man whilst I'm trying clothes on, or think about the possibility of hidden cameras,candid photos or peeping toms. I understand why some women would want their male carers or partners with them, which is why shops could simply offer an extra area for mixed genders. Then everyone is happy, surely?

littlebird standing in the waiting area outside the actual cubicle still gives your dd privacy whilst allowing you to make sure she is okay. No one said you had to go in with her.

A lot of posters here seem to be very insecure about men, and their anger is about mwn being allowed near them while they change and not about the actual issue of the loss of spaces. How do you cope at the swimming pool, being on holiday in a bikini/swimming costume and people seeing you and so on?

A communal shop changing room is no different to a communal swimming changing room.

No more topshop or urban outfitters

somedyke but no one is shoving a man in the same cubicle as you. You are not sharing an intimate area, namely there is one communal area with several intimate rooms/spaces within it. Anyone can enter the communal room, only you can enter the intimate cubicle.

@briechoncheese I’m really sorry to hear your story. Really brave to share - people need to understand the impact of these changes

It’s the fact that yes, there will be and there are many gender fluid/trans people who will innocently just want to try on clothes, but we all know there will be some sick pervs who decide this is a great opportunity. People are so scared of offending people that a person would simply have to say “I identify as” and suddenly they can go wherever they like!

Perhaps that pregnant lady on the other thread should have identified as a B&Q employee!

The area outside a cubicle isn't a "waiting area" it's a corridor thing with people up and down.

Waiting areas, if there are any, are usually outside.

If you try standing in the corridor outside the curtain while your teenager changes 1. she is likely to tell you to stop hovering and sling your hook and 2. you will clag the whole place up.

Do you do this? Go and stand / sit outside like a normal person for god's sake and stop clogging up the aisle.

It's one thing saying the changing rooms are gender-neutral, but when these people force you to say with a straight face that they aren't men, that's another entirely.

twitter.com/travisalabanza/status/927910577866977281

Total bullshit.

Said 'not male'

tells people to 'suck on my balls'

twitter.com/travisalabanza/status/426292816575471616

'suck my dick'

twitter.com/travisalabanza/status/336398293808594944

"oh I bet you're popular (sucks dick motion) call me when your boobs come in. "
twitter.com/travisalabanza/status/249639436541894656

The curtains on changing thingys never fit right and there are always gaps. Even in posh shops. Everyone knows this.

If they want to do unisex they need to remodel the area, with all single rooms with plenty of mirrors inside, and proper floor to ceiling locking doors. And off the main concourse not hidden away. Enough space for teen girls to be together and giggle would be great too - this would also solve the point about the unisex thing removing this sharing thing that girls do with this. It would also solve the issues that have been raised by people with disabilities on this thread.

I very much doubt this is what will happen though.

pisacake

Oh good God, I hadn't seen any of those tweets

xposts

I have no problem at all with this, but it's mumsnet and a trans issue, so, unleash the outrage

I'm sorry you feel this is "unleashing outrage", lauriemarlow. I don't really feel like sitting back and watching men tantrum their way into women-only spaces.

I see nothing wrong with gender neutral/mixed gender changing rooms provided there are also single gender changing areas.

Agree with this.

Keep tweeting toyshop and spread the word.

It is insane that their whole company's dressing room policy is changed after just One man complained. Enough now.

sailor

Do you actually have children? And if so do you actually have pre teen girls?

They go shopping on their own by the time they are 12 and 13, not for long periods but they do! And this is the whole point it is NOT safe and is most definitely not private.

Doesn’t bother me in the slightest. If someone identifies as a woman or man how degrading must they feel if they are refused into a changing room?

But this person doesn't identify as a woman or a man...

A lot of posters here seem to be very insecure about men

Did you type that with a straight face?

I think it just shows that shops should make their changing rooms with doors rather than curtains, and not gender segregated. I completely sympathise with someone who is genderfluid not wanting to feel like they are at risk of harassment. Assuming changing rooms are secure, we don't need them to be separated by gender. We have unisex swimming pool changing spaces and that works fine, so what's wrong with unisex changing in a shop?

laurie

We are entitled to change in privacy and peace. End of.

You can call it outrage, I just call it an opinion.

He is allowed to assume all men are unsafe, but women and girls are not allowed to feel unsafe if biological men/transwomen are in their space

This.

Target, the US retailer, has had at least 25 incidents of voyeurism and assault in the 18 months since its changing rooms went gender neutral. And that's just the men who got caught.

That person thinks they look feminine?
Lol, tragic.