Outraged shoppers threaten to boycott Target after a man...

Was there something wrong with the way bathrooms have always been?
Why don’t people see a problem with letting both sexes into the same bathroom at the same time?

Could someone elaborate on how exactly you'd like gender bathroom policies to be implemented? Should a store be required by law to have security guards in their bathroom doors to ascertain the gender of the people who walk in? What type of penalties should a small business owner who chooses not to pay for a security guard for the toilet incur? What power should a bathroom security guard have in order to assess a person's gender?

Regardless of how one might feel about whether unisex bathrooms are fine; I find it difficult to see how this incident is related. A drunk man exposing himself to a boy in a boy's restroom is equally bad. And also a woman exposing herself to a girl in the girl's bathroom. The article implies that the man was let into the women's bathroom because of the store's policies, but I am certain that the man did not ask for permission to walk in.

predators come in any gender and with any preference. Yes, people expose themselves in bathrooms, and because of that they are in a more vulnerable position. Yes, predators take advantage of such increased vulnerability.

The argument against unisex toilets,then, would be:

'If you allow men and women in the toilets of the opposite sex, then you make it easier for heterosexual predators to have access to victims of their preferred gender'

Such statement is logically sound. However, it poses the question 'How effective of a deterrent is a bathroom gender policy?'. History shows that not a lot. Heterosexual assault is very common in bathrooms, because there is no one to implement the policy.

On the other hand, one has to look at the benefits of accepting a gender-inclusive policy. An increasing segment of the world's population are becoming comfortable enough to come out to the rest of society as transexuals. These people have to live under immense social and psychological pressures from a society that is constantly criticizing them. Think about a time that you have felt bad about one of your personal characteristics because someone criticized you... Now, imagine living a life under constant scrutiny, insults, criticisms, and people who do not understand and accept you for who you are. That is why transexual suicide is so common.

Gender inclusive policies are about being compassionate human beings and saying "Hey... We know you are suffering because the society you were born into does not know compassion. But we want you to know that some of us accept you for who you are."

In my opinion, gender inclusive policies are worth it. If you want security guards in the toilet to stop predators, go ahead, bring security guards into the toilets to keep an eye for people snooping - regardless of their gender.