The washrooms in the commercial building that houses my constituency office are very basic.
Two single washrooms. They both have a toilet, a sink, a mirror and a locking door. The only difference between the two, is a baby change table. Like I said, very basic.
When we first moved in to the office space, with two dentist offices on the same floor, the washrooms were marked “Men’s” and “Women’s.” We never thought anything of it.
There are two keys hanging inside the door of our office. And, they were also designated, despite being able to open both washroom doors.
During the first few months in the office, we met with youth from the youth medical clinic. They told us about the challenges they were facing accessing confidential medical advice, care and support. The youth clinic run by a local doctor was always over-subscribed, and under-resourced.
All they want is proper care, and access to trained professionals, in a safe environment, to address their physical and mental health challenges.
Designating washrooms
They also let me know that there are no washrooms in Sidney that are not designated. It’s just a simple binary choice. You pick – Men’s or Women’s. But, it is not that easy. Our culture is changing. We are more diverse and we are more open to acknowledging the diversity. Our bathroom signage is behind the times.
It has always been more complex. We just unnecessarily forced people to conform to the basic binary. In all likelihood it’s partly the cause of the pressure on mental health services at the youth clinic.
There is another little stereotypical artifact in those washrooms as well. Remember the only difference between them? Remember the baby change table? Well, that was in the women’s washroom.
As a former, stay-at-home, work-from-home dad, this is an issue for me. Clearly, dads are an important part of processing more of the kid-waste these days.
So, I made a request that the property manager change the designation. In the end, does it really matter? One day in the last few weeks, they just became “Washrooms.” Which, is really what they have been all along. Thank you to Peter for making this happen.
For the youth who raised this issue, you are welcome to use either one. For those of us who are impatiently waiting to use one, while the other one is empty – relief! And, you no longer have to use the washroom designated for women to change a diaper.
Yes, it’s a small change. But, do not underestimate its impact!
Thank you Adam! This is very important work.
More of this please!
Funny you should talk about washrooms today. I am the B.C. advocate for a special type of public washrooms called Changing Places. It is a UK design standard that we have managed to bring to Canada through some of our international airports. YYJ is putting one in with their expansion, YVR, YYZ and YUL also have changing places in service now. It would be great if we could start to see these in other public venues such as major B.C. Ferries Terminal’s, malls, stadiums and other places where people congregate in large numbers. We all take the concept of a washroom for granted until it doesn’t quite work for us. Here is a YouTube link with more info from New Zealand
https://youtu.be/CpfMZFrhEik
Agree totally, Adam. These “small” changes can be incredibly important to building a sustainable society, economy and environment. When individuals adopt the mindset to take action it will empower others to act as well. The youth who asked, you who urged the landlord, the landlord who logically changed the signs, the people who will experience this as the new normal… everyone involved will increasingly expect and take action.
This is a lesson for Government and our civil service. Planning does not equal action. Planning is too often the enemy of action, a delay, a diversion, a ploy to avoid action, kicking the problem down the road. What are concrete actions that could be done for salmon, right away? If there is no planning agreement on some potential actions, go ahead with what can be done NOW.
And when our Government starts taking actions, it will reinforce an action-oriented mindset across society. “When you see something that can be done – in any context and at any scale – you have both permission and expectation to push for action now.”
Youth are protesting around the globe. They are calling for action now. Municipalities are declaring a climate emergency – the Islands Trust declared unanimously yesterday! These are not calls for multi-year strategies, consultations, aspirational goals, targets, carbon taxes, offsets, and business-as-usual. They are calls for actions NOW. By everyone.
Bravo to your constituents, you and your landlord for taking action. As you have written, “Yes, it is a small change. But, do not underestimate its impact!”
My husband has Alzheimers. He needs me to accompany him inside the washroom. Gender based washrooms have been an ongoing issue for us. Disabled washrooms are few and far between. This is a solution that would work for us.