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Friday 15 April 2016

Toilet tantrums

Various US states have passed, or tried to pass, or been defeated in trying to pass, "Bathroom privacy" laws. "Bathroom" is the coy US word for toilet.

The problem they're trying to solve, is that of trans people (men who have become women or vice versa) using a toilet of the wrong gender.

Me, I'm not bothered. The first time I encountered a female cleaner in a male toilet, I was mildly surprised, but it didn't worry me. Because what's the problem, actually?

But Americans being American, it seems to be a huge issue. On the one hand, there's the people who feel unsafe peeing while there's someone of a different gender nearby; on the other hand, there's people who feel unsafe peeing while there's someone of a different gender nearby, and yes, I know that's the same thing twice, but that's how it is. The root problem is that the same person can be considered to be one gender by some people, another gender by others.

I won't deny that privacy is useful in the toilet - I don't really want anyone else watching me while I take a dump, whatever their gender. It's undignified.

So I have two possible solutions for our American friends.

Solution one - the problem is that some people want to dump in places where only people of their chosen gender dump, and "male" and "female" isn't enough choice. Facebook allows you to choose one of 50 possible genders.

Agender
Androgyne
Androgynes
Androgynous
Bigender
Cis
Cis Female
Cis Male
Cis Man
Cis Woman
Cisgender
Cisgender Female
Cisgender Male
Cisgender Man
Cisgender Woman
Female to Male
FTM
Gender Fluid
Gender Nonconforming
Gender Questioning
Gender Variant
Genderqueer
Intersex
Male to Female
MTF
Neither
Neutrois
Non-binary
Other
Pangender
Trans
Trans Female
Trans Male
Trans Man
Trans Person
Trans*Female
Trans*Male
Trans*Man
Trans*Person
Trans*Woman
Transexual
Transexual Female
Transexual Male
Transexual Man
Transexual Person
Transexual Woman
Transgender Female
Transgender Person
Transmasculine
Two-spirit 

So the answer, obviously, is to have 50 different bathrooms, each one clearly labelled (and please don't use some cute icon that most people won't understand, please use the correct words (that most people won't understand)).

Or.

Have one bathroom, each cubicle with floor-to-ceiling walls.

Simples.

1 comment:

  1. Coy US word? Noooo. "Restroom" is the coy US work. Bathroom is a room with a bath in it the world over. It usually has a toilet as well, so those too genteel to mention unmentionable things can engage in circumlocutions about their lavatorial, as in washing, requirements. There are even places where the euphemism "Comfort Room" (or even "CR") is used. The Philippines, where, oddly, people have NO COMPUNCTION at all in telling you about their "loose bowel movements", or, if they want be slightly more discreet, their "LBMS". I sh*t you not, as they say in the land of the free and home of the brave (where people need to be protected from having the wrong kind of people in the, er, room with the cubicles).

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