Thread by @MatthewGreenf11

uncommongroundmedia.com/flushing-women… "Women’s toilets are a prime example of something fought for by women, in the face of opposition from men, which men are now appropriating for themselves and in the process forcing some women away from the public sphere. "

"By 1852 ‘Public Waiting Rooms’ were appearing, but the assumption was that women would not compromise their dignity to be seen entering a public toilet, so the vast majority of these toilets were for men.

Women had always struggled to relieve themselves outside of the home."

"This was perfectly acceptable to most Victorian men..The public sphere was the male sphere, so preventing women from accessing public toilets was a way of ensuring that the ‘urinary leash’ remained short. Women could only stray as far from home as their bladders would allow."

"The Ladies Sanitary Association was formed in the 1850s and campaigned for public toilets for women. They lectured and distributed pamphlets and made limited progress in securing some of the first facilities for women...

...The Union of Women’s Liberal and Radical Associations also campaigned for public facilities, particularly for working women. They agitated to have women’s facilities included..but angry men protested as they did not want women’s facilities to be next to theirs. "

"The increase in the female workforce, necessitated by the First World War, also led to the provision of women’s toilets in some workplaces..This was resisted in some cases, as the increase..was intended to be a temporary measure to ease the problems caused by male conscription"

" UNESCO recognises the provision of single-sex toilets as being vital to overcome the barriers preventing girls from accessing education. In UK and North American schools, however, single-sex provision is being eroded in favour of ‘gender-neutral’ – actually unisex – facilities"

"for girls there is the added complication of learning to deal with menstruation in a unisex environment. We already know that girls miss school during their period, so to add the presence of boys in the toilets..seems just a further way to compromise girls’ education."

"Perhaps the most disturbing aspect of the push for unisex toilets is how women..are treated. Accusations of transphobia are thrown around like confetti and women are told that they need to be educated out of their boundaries."

"women know that the provision of single-sex facilities does not rule out assault. However, what it does is provide women with the power to police their spaces, to call out any men present and to expect authorities to act when men violate the rules."

"Men have joined the priesthood or become teachers in order to abuse, is it so difficult to imagine them uttering the words ‘I feel like a woman’ in order to insinuate themselves into women’s spaces?"

"The failure to provide facilities in the Victorian period was partly a deliberate ploy to keep women out of public life. Similarly, in the present day, the thrust to remove women’s rights to single-sex spaces is in part a misogynistic pushback of women’s rights."

"Preventing women from challenging this assault on their rights with accusations of transphobia and threats of violence is bound to lead to some women, often already marginalised, feeling that they have no choice but to stop using public facilities such as toilets "

"That this is considered acceptable collateral damage in the push for self-identification should be a wake-up call. Women’s rights and spaces were hard won by women, and they should not be sacrificed for men, no matter how they claim to feel."

independent.co.uk/news/world/sin… "Unesco is urging governments around the world to prioritise providing single-sex toilets in schools, warning as many as 1 in 10 girls in some countries are missing out on lessons because of their period."

theguardian.com/global-develop… "two girls, 14 and 15, were found gang raped and hanged after they went to relieve themselves in the dark.."There are no crops now, nowhere to hide, and men can see us from all sides,""

nytimes.com/2017/09/03/wor… "The lack of facilities is not just a matter of public health, as the movie makes clear, but also touches on issues of safety, women’s rights and human dignity."

news.un.org/en/story/2014/… "Chair of UN-Water, Mr. Michel Jarraud said..“We have to work in every possible way to address the vulnerabilities and challenges faced by women who lack access to toilets and sanitation."

panarabiaenquirer.com/wordpress/saud… "A line of women queuing to use the facility soon formed, although some were reportedly later arrested for failing to provide a letter from their husband."