It came to my attention last spring that
a man who identifies as a woman was using the women’s facilities for my local
indoor swimming pool.
As a woman and a mom, I naturally was concerned
that my children or I could be in the presence of a man while using the women’s
locker room at the Claude Moore Recreation and Community Center in Sterling,
Virginia.
So I reached out to the pool director and
division manager of this Loudoun County government building to ask what their
policies were regarding locker room access.
That was just the beginning.
After months of asking various
authorities, I have been unable to find a single straight answer about our
neighborhood pool’s policy.
Then a few days ago, an official police report surfaced: A naked
man walking around the women’s locker room was seen peeping at a girl inside
one of the shower stalls. When recreation center staff approached the man, he
fled, and investigators are still looking for him.
I have no idea how this person
identifies. I have no idea why no one asked questions when this man entered the
women’s facilities in the first place. Most importantly, I have no idea what
would have happened if this criminal had claimed to be a woman when confronted
by staff.
While I write about this, Congress is about to vote on the Equality Act, [which would make this policy the law of the land across all 50 states.
As we move into the summer months, I already
do not feel safe taking my children to my Loudoun County pool—not just because the
peeping Tom is still at large, but because of what I discovered about our local
community center.
If I cannot be confident that my children
and I will be safe in a female-only space, where else are we supposed to go?
When I approached the director and
division manager at the pool, I was told that as of 2010, the facility granted access to private facilities on the basis of self-identified
gender.
I was told that if a woman complains
about a man in the locker room, and the man identifies as a transgender woman,
then staff would have a conversation with that person. It was unclear what
would happen after that.
When I expressed my dismay about this
ambiguous policy, the director asked me point-blank: “How much privacy do you
need?”
I could only blink at him. I was
speechless.
As I paused, he told me there are “partitioned
areas” and each shower is curtained off individually.
That made my blood boil. So I told him:
“Have you ever been in a woman’s locker
room? No? Well, let me tell you how it works.
“Little kids are annoying—they will come
under the stall doors of the toilets and open the doors while you are using
them. They will pull open the shower curtains while you’re in there.
“And trying to get dressed in a slippery
shower or a bathroom stall—where there are not adequate shelves to keep your
stuff from falling onto the floor or into the toilet—is impractical. So my
family and I put our stuff on a bench in the open area where it’s much drier
with more room to move.
“I don’t like to undress in front of
everyone, so I will wrap myself in a towel and try to get dressed that way. But
I know that if the towel does slip, it’s not a big deal, because it’s only
other women and small children in there. Never mind that the shower curtains
and stall partitions often allow for glimpses of the people behind them anyway.
“But now you are telling me that my
children or I could have to share this sensitive space with a man?”
The director and division manager said
they would take my concerns to their boss. I never heard back.
When I sent a follow-up email, I was told
that staff were busy and would respond soon. I have not heard anything since.
So I took matters into my own hands. That
summer, I stood before the Loudoun County School Board and shared my concerns
about gender identity policies. Then I emailed the county government to ask for
clarification about the policy, but received no answer.
I hope that authorities find the man who victimized
that poor girl at our local pool. Regardless of whether he identifies as a man
or a woman, my search to find answers about what to do in situations like these
has taught me something.
Under a gender identity policy like the
one at our pool, I no longer can trust that authorities in my hometown will
prioritize my needs and those of my children when we are in supposed safe
spaces for women.
Before this policy took effect, I cannot
imagine having been asked by an authority figure how much privacy I needed from
men’s bodies and men’s glances, and then lectured on how much privacy ought to
be sufficient.
The way this gender identity policy has
changed my hometown is subtle, but comes with real consequences.
Now Congress is considering the Equality Act, [a dangerous bill that would make this policy the law of the land across all 50 states.
If the legislation passes, women across
the country will find themselves in the same situation as my family and
me—unable to trust that the responsible authorities will fight for our privacy
and safety.
Don’t be fooled by the rhetoric. This is
not equality; this is unfair to women.
Don’t be afraid to speak out.
The post Men Already Enter the Women’s Locker Room at My Local Pool. Now Congress Could Make It Worse. appeared first on The Daily Signal.
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