Sharing a locker room with a transgender

LTK wrote:

RyuJin wrote: there are gyms that allow children under 16?

the last gym i was member of required under 18 be accompanied by adults, and no one under 16 was allowed for safety and insurance reasons....

I think you're right.

Still, I'd feel the same with a 16 year old daughter.

have you seen how 16 year old girls act?....my nieces and their friends have given me perspective on that... :whistle:

they certainly act differently when mom and dad aren't around...

All things read I am walking away with this(i.e. What I have learned that I didn't already believe):

Locker rooms should have communal areas with private(locking door) changing rooms, showers, and toilets.

Having researched further issues surround this story, I would also point out that this Mrs. Cormier is "Christian", her husband works for a church, and 2015 has been marked with a rash of proposed (Right Wing inspired) Anti-LGBT legislation.
For all the fear-mongering of what "might" happen, I've yet to see a rash of assaults in women's locker rooms by *any*community.
It is quote obvious by Mrs. Cormier's wording that she has either no education, or no respect for the LGBT community. She has already vowed "A crusade" against Planet Fitness. Don Quixote needs a windmill.
Fits a pattern, of late. She went through the chain of command, didn't get the answer she wanted from the Front Desk or Corporate, and so figured to stir up fearful insurrection in the locker room with other members. How very Sith.

To my knowledge, this transgender woman's *only* offense was that she *exists* in a space/system defined for a nebulous "binary" system. She wasn't waving "her junk". She wasn't "rubbing one out". She simply "was".
I am willing to bet she is not the *only* one, operating day-to-day throughout a system "built for 2".
Contrary to the fear-slinging of what everyone says *might* happen, many dismiss what actually IS happening, in society today. LGB(and especially T) murders are spiking ever higher. One 22 year old Transgendered woman was actually murdered by her own father. So when balanced on "Fear" risks vs. "Factual" risks, I say Planet Fitness is doing the correct thing, and I respect that.

Human life extends far beyond simple XX/XY combinations, and many people are surprised to learn that 1 in 2,000 children are born "intersexed" (which actually reaches beyond the scope of this reply). We use binary because it simplifies things, and Sun Tzu wrote "People are like water..they will always follow the path of least resistance."

As stated by the wisdom of previous responses, the "weak woman/strong man" argument still holds sway in society, and no matter how low the stereotype, there will *always* be "10%" willing to live down to it. There will be no true equality until "Chivalry is for All, Respect for all." Period. No "For (x) demorgraphic".

Women are still fighting. minority women are still fighting harder. Almost nobody picks on the Bi-sexual women and Lesbians are invisible, (until they choose not to be). Transgendered women are easy to spot, easy to prey on, and one of the last bastions of discriminatory humor and Social Disdain. "C'mon, 'Bert in a Skirt' is FUNNY!, gufaw-aw-aw!"

I look at Mrs. Cormier, and her "I'm the victim!" posturing, and I feel a sad compassion for her. Not that she lost her membership, but that her apparently smug, Biblically inspired, privileged, and narrow world-view will never allow her to see beyond her own nose. She has, however, shown that there ARE people and organizations willing to stand true to their principles, popular or not.

In this, there is hope for humanity. ALL humanity. If the Force truly connects all living things, it is my belief that a Jedi should discern a person not by their parts, but by their actions.

rugadd wrote: All things read I am walking away with this(i.e. What I have learned that I didn't already believe):

Locker rooms should have communal areas with private(locking door) changing rooms, showers, and toilets.

Forget about privacy, I say everybody gets to see everyone else's ugly arse while changing. Everybody can get along this way and hopefully that'd take care of those body image issues that seem to be plaguing the average modern idiot.
Except in bathrooms. In the UK segregated toilets are often of unreasonable quality for men (never gets cleaned, giant non-partionned urinal so that everyone else's urine can splash onto you). What we need are whetherspoon's-quality cubicles.

i pretty much agree with the essential idea of reframing our ideas and expectations of privacy

"normal" and "neurotic" are ideas/phenomena which have legitimacy in proportion to the isolation and secretiveness necessary for them to develop

in the ideal world freedom is the expectation and individuality iz the standard and this cannot actually be achieved imo with a strict enforcement of everyones "right" to total privacy

privacy allows us to imagine ourselves superior and fear ourselves inferior and basically feed a thousand neurotic absurdities which keep us locked into value battles with ourselves and eachother over absolutely stupid criteria such as body comparisons and lifestyle choices which have no real influence over each other but which we all have a tendancy to FEEL affected by

simply the existence of those who contradict our own principles FEELS offensive and this mechanism of being offended is equally active in the tolerant flower power liberal who is OFFENDED by the restrictive and violent enforcer type as it is in the ultra conservative right winger who is OFFENDED at the perverted evil or just gullible "live and let live" idiot decadents

imo we should all live in glass houses AND throw stones, especially in the living room

I have since learned that the Planet Fitness in question had private changing areas within the woman's locker room. Meaning any clothes-changing is done in complete privacy, even within each locker room.

As a previous poster pointed out, it sounds like Mrs. Cormier is simply on a crusade against those she deems as morally bankrupt (I know the type).

I still don't support open-changing areas with women and transgendered women for reasons I've already mentioned, but I reverse course on my views of this Planet Fitness in particular as I don't see anything wrong with their current, private undressing arrangements they have available for patrons.

LTK wrote: Still, I'd feel the same with a 16 year old daughter.

But would you feel the same way with a son?

If a transgender man was undressing in front of my 16 year old son and his boobs were out to be seen, no, I wouldn't care.

If it makes a difference, simply so you understand where I'm coming from when you respond, it's not that I want to shield my daughter or son from seeing sex organs.

A man with a penis, or a transgender woman with a penis are typically physically stronger than females and where the will and opportunity is available, I'd be much more concerned with my daughter against a man or a transgender woman than I would with a transgender man with my son.

Are men and boys raped? Sadly, yes. But I don’t think that happens near as much as women or girls being raped hence why I would like my daughter to take more precautions.

I don't know what that makes me out to be in your eyes, but I'm always willing to be educated so keep that in mind, too: I'm not completely belligerent in my ways; this dog can still learn new tricks, haha.

something to think about....

as reluctant as women/girls are to report rape, how much more reluctant are men/boys....

it's no secret that men/boys are raised to be tough...being raped would certainly strike a blow against that...male pride is a tricky thing....to admit to being raped would be an admission of weakness, and few men would do that....

Very good point RyuJin.