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Feminism: Sex and gender discussions

Feminism: chat

Original poster

'No nudity' rule in the surf club changing room - Australia

34 replies

JellySaurus · 31/03/2023 07:07

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-australia-65133860]]

Curious what the background to this is. Safeguarding children is of course critically important, but are children actually put at risk by briefly seeing women's bodies while showering and dressing in the women's changing room?

The article carefully does not mention anything about whether this is a women's changing room or a mixed-sex room. The swimmer's reaction seems excessive. What exactly made who feel intimidated and uncomfortable? And why is this even news at all?

Hmmm...

OP posts:
Helleofabore · 31/03/2023 10:31

I think it is rare that women take the extreme of doing the things I mentioned, such as sitting naked on a stool and blow drying themselves all over. I only have seen that a couple of time and it could have been the same person both times. My main issue is the sitting on the stool without even a towel underneath.

No one should feel the need to dress with a towel on. That is the extreme the other way and it really is not practical. If you choose to do this yourself, fill your boots but don’t expect others to do so.

jay55 · 31/03/2023 10:45

Everyone has had a towel slip/drop while trying to wrangle a bra on after swimming.
I don't think men who only need a towel around their waists understand how different getting dressed under a towel is for women.

But of course I don't think teens are that worried about a woman's boobs briefly being on display. Can't imagine that is what caused complaints.

picklemewalnuts · 31/03/2023 11:01

I've seen the odd woman seemingly oblivious to the convention of being naked the least time possible.
Most of us try and stay partially clothed, or naked for the minimal time. A very few use the hairdryers for their nether regions, and massage body lotion (fake tan?) slowly and carefully over every inch of themselves Grin. It does look odd. Perhaps a European upbringing, or an assertive body confidence thing?

BoredOfThisMansWorld · 31/03/2023 11:11

I thought it was generally considered healthy for women to be exposed to a realistic and wide range of naked-ish female bodies from time to time? To counteract the filtered and male-gaze centred images that saturate all media?

Which is a very good reason to ban nudity of course. Won't somebody think of the livelihoods of those poor plastic surgeons?

JenniferBarkley · 31/03/2023 11:17

Like a PP, I think the answer lies in this quote:

"We're not strutting around naked, we're just having a shower and putting on our clothes or having a chat."

Standing around chatting while completely naked will make some people uncomfortable. I'm guessing the club made increasingly formal attempts to get the women to cop on and cover up a bit, starting from a quiet word and then escalating.

MarkWithaC · 31/03/2023 11:25

GordonGarden · 31/03/2023 10:23

Interesting responses. I work in women's/sexual health, so may have a skewed level of 'meh' towards seeing nudity, but I actually think it's really healthy and important for children and teens to see non-sexual examples of normal (i.e. not airbrushed, filtered etc) bodies of their own biological sex.
Obviously the trans issue complicates this, and there's clearly some context on this particular story that isn't made plain, but some of the responses on this thread seem to suggest that there's something wrong even with biological females showering, changing, chatting etc nude in a women's changing room, particularly if children or teenagers are present. I'm about as far from cool or woke as you can get but I think, for girls growing up today, exposure from a young age to normal, biologically female bodies - fat, thin, hairy, shaved, big boobs, mastectomies, stretch marks, six-packs, the whole gamut - in a non-sexual context would be a welcome antidote to the pornified images that are at present their only point of reference as to what women's bodies look like.
I found it really refreshing when I visited Iceland that women and girls did chat while they were showering and changing - that doesn't sexualise the female body, it normalises it. And anyone who didn't want to see other women's bodies (or men's, in the men's changing room) had the option to face the wall when they showered or changed, and to change under a towel - which is what DH did, I believe.

I couldn't agree more.
To be clear, I am absolutely pro-single-sex changing rooms – no men, however they identify, in women's spaces . But I think women and girls naked in a space where being naked is appropriate and useful is completely healthy. I don't want to shower with my cozzie on, thanks, and in my gym there are only a very few cubicles, which are usually occupied and in any case are tiny enough that I regularly bang an elbow or knee on the side if I do use one.
I don't like the posts on here talking about women 'marching around' in changing rooms, it being about exhibitionism, etc. Sure, a minority might, but generally it just isn't true. I personally do not 'march' about naked in a changing room and none of the other women I see naked in there do so either. We're just showering, changing etc. Talking about women strutting or marching about naked is body-shaming.

QueenHippolyta · 31/03/2023 11:36

Grew up in the 70s, went to an all girls' school. Then later uni, women's gyms, saunas. We showered, changed and got naked. Big deal. And like the others responding it was really good to see women's bodies, their variety, not fake magazine air-brushed bodies.
Too see women's bodies in a natural non-sexualized way is very healthy.

Helleofabore · 31/03/2023 11:41

See. I grew up with very open beach showers so showering in my togs and my thongs to get the salt and sand off and then going somewhere to change was standard. Generally you went to a concrete shell of a 'hut' that had no showers but was single sex and you got changed there. I guess it is what you are used to.

Terrigal must have some comfy change rooms compared to other beaches.

L353A1 · 12/12/2023 11:16

Yes! Non-sexual, sex-segregated, (no trans) nudity is healthy. Some may avoid looking, but don't ban it for the rest of us!

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