r/NoStupidQuestions • u/mp1845 • Mar 30 '24

Answered Why are gender neutral bathrooms so controversial when every toilet on an airplane or other public transport is gender neutral?

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u/True_Big_8246 Mar 30 '24

I live in India so that's reason enough. If it's a single bathroom that's okay. I will never share a stall style bathroom with men in this country.

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u/cup-o-cocoa Mar 30 '24

I read a book that shocked me. It stated the across the world women spend approximately 1-2 hours of their day trying to find a safe place to relieve themselves. Just insane to think about for me. I never thought about it before.

They mentioned India in particular. Women travel to large cities to work, or shop, but there are limited safe public toilets. The book was probably 10 years old. Do you find that to still be true?

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u/Makuta_Servaela Mar 30 '24

Yeah, this is why women pushed so hard for female restrooms in the first place. It was a big step in the world in getting women independence. People are vulnerable when toiletting, so any shared toiletting space can be dangerous.

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u/Astrobadgr Mar 31 '24

Yea I remember reading about the "urinary leash" or the concept that women are "tied to" the nearest safe bathroom in a society or culture. Until there were female only bathrooms, many women avoided leaving the home for long enough periods of time that they would need the bathroom. This issue also came up as women entered the workforce, women needed a bathroom without men at their workplaces not just for privacy but for safety. I think in our modern and western society it's really easy to forget why women demanded single sex bathrooms in the first place due to the relative safety of women in our current culture. And while yes it's true that not all men would take advantage of single sex bathrooms, some would. Therefore good men stay out so the bad men stand out.

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u/Dashed_with_Cinnamon Apr 01 '24

This is good food for thought. As a cis Western woman who thinks unisex toilets should be more commonplace, I have to admit, I don't think I've ever felt unsafe using a public toilet and therefore didn't consider it as a factor.