Thursday, Feb 24 2022

Bathrooms were separated by sex to prevent sexual assaults

Original posted by Gontzal Uriarte

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Scientific Articles

Explanation of the Post

It has been argued that the separation of bathrooms is a sexist, paternalistic or elite imitation issue. However, this scientific article shows historical evidence about the real reasons that led the authorities to separate the bathrooms by sex. In the 19th century many women suffered sexual harassment in factory bathrooms. The labor inspectorate in the United States decided to separate the bathrooms to avoid these aggressions.

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4 Comments

  1. Hello.

    I found out this information about the steps institutions should follow to make campuses more trans inclusive. far from suggesting that mixed spaces be created, they propose that in addition to gender-segregated toilets, changing rooms, etc., there should be spaces for LGBT people to use and feel safe.

    Brett Genny Beemyn PhD , Andrea Domingue MEd , Jessica Pettitt MEd & Todd Smith MEd (2005) Suggested Steps to Make Campuses More Trans-Inclusive, Journal of Gay & Lesbian Issues in Education, 3:1, 89-94, DOI: 10.1300/J367v03n01_09

    I hope you find it helpful for the debate.

    • I totally agree with the creation of inclusive bathrooms respecting the traditional ones. This post was created to clarify what were the origins of the creation of bathrooms separated by sex since there are people who affirm that this separation is sexist or puritanist and yet I believe that it was a social achievement for the sexual freedom of women.

  2. This statement becomes murky when you consider the word “sex,” because gender is a social construct. Murchison et al. says, “Youth whose restroom and locker room use was restricted were more likely to experience sexual assault.” Therefore, restricting public bathroom use could lead to more sexual assault in some cases. This can also severely impact transgender individuals’ mental health, leading this restriction to cause further damage. An article by Bagagli et al. states that “the lack of access to public bathrooms leads trans youth more prone to physical and mental health issues.”

    Murchison, Gabriel R., et al. “School Restroom and Locker Room Restrictions and Sexual Assault Risk among Transgender Youth.” Pediatrics, vol. 143, no. 6, 2019, https://doi.org/10.1542/peds.2018-2902

    Bagagli, Beatriz Pagliarini, et al. “Trans Women and Public Restrooms: The Legal Discourse and Its Violence.” Frontiers in Sociology, vol. 6, 2021, https://doi.org/10.3389/fsoc.2021.652777. 

    • I totally agree with the creation of inclusive bathrooms for transgender people, but respecting the traditional ones. This post was created to clarify what were the origins of the creation of bathrooms separated by sex since there are people who affirm that this separation is sexist or puritanist and yet I believe that it was a social achievement for the sexual freedom of women.

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