Gender Neutral Toilets

[TheShoesa]

I mentioned on the Micro sexism thread about seeing these for the first time yesterday in a university setting where the available toilets were
Single sex men's
Accessible
Gender Neutral

The gender neutral was obviously the women's with a new name, as it was bog standard (ha,ha) cubicles with a communal washbasin / hand dryer area.

I emailed today to ask why there wasn't a single sex toilet for females and was it indirect discrimination as men now had the choice of single or mixed sex whereas women had mixed sex only?

They said no discrimination as there were female only toilets at another location on the same floor and they now had gender neutral across all their sites as per their diversity and inclusion policy.

So I asked why they called them Gender Neutral rather than Mixed Sex given that sex is biological and gender is a social construct. And why had they changed the women's and not the men's, given that the men's was likely to have urinals which would be better for male users.

My questions have now been referred on to estates!

I know it's futile, and nothing will change. But if I can get one person to think critically rather than just accepting what they have been told is the most 'inclusive' option, I'll feel like my time hasn't been completely wasted

Not an AIBU, I meant to start this thread elsewhere!

So glad the erosion of women's rights bores you Stripey. I prefer to make sure my DD and I have the right to privacy.

Bit yanbu to ask this! Well done OP

Yawn.

StripeyTopRedLips Why are you here if you find threads boring? Surely you have things to do that do not bore you?

Nobody is forcing you to come here, or to open any threads.

I'm sorry, however, if the issue of women's privacy and safety bores you.

Stripey, if you are tired, go to bed.

Careful you don't get deleted for yawning. I'm sure people have been deleted for yawning on this board before.

How on earth can they not see that is actual discrimination against women? Good on you for reporting it.

A good point, that making the Men's mixed-sex better serves the users.

They said no discrimination as there were female only toilets at another location on the same floor

And did they advertise this at the location where there were no Women's toilets? Were users able to make an informed choice?

More specifically, were female users able to make an informed choice, or were they discriminated against by having that information withheld?

"And did they advertise this at the location where there were no Women's toilets? Were users able to make an informed choice?"

That is a really good point. @TheShoesa, would you be able to message Estates and request that a sign directing women to their single-sex toilets be placed by the newly mixed-sex toilets? Because women who have used these toilets in the past may not be aware of those other single-sex toilets, and it would surely be the right thing to inform them they have a choice?

Sorry I posted and disappeared, my short trip to drop a dc to an activity took two hours because of a road closure and then gridlocked traffic.

I accidentally started this on AIBU but it was very efficiently moved over here immediately after I reported to MNHQ, so Stripey was yawning on the AIBU board (where it is possibly allowed).

Back to the subject in hand. I will mention to Estates that there was no signage on the re-purposed 'Gender Neutral' toilets to indicate where the nearest single sex facility was. When I was there, no one was behind the reception desk, so there was no one to ask.

Stripey was yawning on the AIBU board (where it is possibly allowed).

Yeah I think you're allowed to be bored and biscuit-cynical all over MN. But feminism sleeps for no-one.

Good for you OP for following this up. We must keep chipping away wherever and whenever we can. My mum visited me today and I told her about M&S. She is disgusted and is going to make sure her friends know.

I do think that chipping away is preferable to a rant, which I was prone to when I first came to the no debate

And I can't be the only person who has started at 'be kind, it's not affecting you, why are you bothered. live and let live' and got progressively more 'wtaf? That CANNOT be right!' as time has passed and knowledge has been gained.

If no one ever says they are uncomfortable with a situation, it will never be looked at and the lack of opposition will be taken as acceptance of whichever changes have been made. I am long past university, so have nothing to lose by speaking out. I am sure if I was a student there I would say nothing, whether I agreed with it or not

Looks like the RCGP has fallen.

I don't trust AH at all. I wonder if that signage is on a multiple cubicle set up door, or on a single lockable unit with hand wash facilities. If it's the latter, the main problem is the crap wording.

I don't mind the "Everyone" toilet at all if it is a self-contained unit with a sink, and there is still single sex provision for women nearby. Hope that is the case.

Women aren't against there being "third spaces" Dr Haddock. We are against the removal of pur single sex spaces.

Yes it does look like a bit of paper stuck on. Probably by Haddock to make a point.