A California teen cried remembering seeing “a naked man” in the locker room of her local YMCA, telling city hall in her San Diego suburb that she was traumatized by the experience with the person she described as a transgender woman.
Rebecca Philips, 17, said she was changing after swimming one day last month at the Santee YMCA when he saw a naked trans woman in the locker room.
“While showering after my workout, I saw a naked man in the women’s locker room,” she told Santee City Council.
“I immediately went back into the shower, terrified, and hid behind his flimsy excuse as a curtain until he was gone.”
Philips said the policy of allowing trans women in women’s locker rooms should be changed, and added that she was especially concerned that her 5-year-old sister might be exposed to naked trans women at the YMCA, reported the Daily Mail newspaper.
“This is the YMCA, where hundreds of children spend summer afternoons in childcare camps,” Philips added.
“This is the YMCA where my little sister took gymnastics classes. The locker room was supposed to be her safe haven to gossip with her friends, shower and change.”
Phillips she said YMCA staff reprimanded her and told her that the trans woman had every right to be in the women’s locker roomsaid the Daily Mail.
Women’s facilities can be used by anyone in California now that state law says people must be able to use facilities that align with their gender identity.
Philips told the council that she was very upset by the experience, but when she raised the issue with YMCA management, she was told that “the man I saw could shower wherever he wanted.”
“A grown man can shower with a teenage girl at his YMCA here in Santee.”
“They made me feel like I had done something wrong,” he said. “The indecent exposure of a man to a minor was inconvenient for them.”
“We rely on subject matter experts, laws, and guidelines set forth by the State of California to ensure our policies are welcoming and respectful to all members of the community,” the YMCA wrote in a statement.
The YMCA said in a statement: “We are aware of a situation involving two members in the Santee YMCA locker room earlier this month. The comfort and safety of all our members are our top priority.
“As a community-focused organization, we strive to meet the needs of all people. We recognize that birth and gender identity are sensitive issues. We rely on subject matter experts, laws, and guidelines set forth by the State of California to ensure our policies are welcoming and respectful to all members of the community.”
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