A swimming pool in Canada is doubling-down on its decision to allow a man in a bikini to use a female changing room.
The incident happened in July 5 of this year at Commonwealth Place in Saanich, British Columbia, and has since sparked a storm of controversy.
Figures like JK Rowling and tennis legend Martina Navratilova have all weighed in, as local mom Angie Tyrrell revealed the response she received from staffers after complaining.
First, though, she told Reduxx how her daughter, who was 10 at the time, encountered the man in the changing room’s shower – describing him as muscular with a ‘hairy’ chest and back.
She further recalled how the unnamed person had been wearing a child’s bikini – complete with tiaras, sparkles, and frills akin to those of a Disney princess.
When Tyrrell told a staffer behind the front desk about what had happened, they brushed it off, she said.
Subsequent correspondence over the computer revealed how management did not see the instance as an issue, eventually earning Tyrrell’s wrath.
‘While the District of Saanich welcomes and celebrates diversity, and we encourage visitors to our Recreation Facilities to use the restroom or changeroom with which they identify and where they feel most safe,’ pool assistant manager Bree Dobler wrote to Tyrrell.
‘All patrons are expected to respect the privacy and identity of others and wear appropriate attire for swimming as outlined in our Code of Conduct.’
Dobler went on to insist Tyrrell had done the right thing in going to in-person staff first, while expressing regret over their lukewarm response.
‘You did the right thing by approaching staff with your concerns and it is unfortunate that they did not take your concerns seriously and call the onsite supervisor to gain better understanding of the situation and follow up accordingly, Dobler wrote.
‘I will be following up with our staffing teams in this regard.’
She then added how for Tyrrell’s ‘next visit’, she and her children could take advantage of one of the ‘universal or single stall washrooms or changerooms for patrons with concerns for their own modesty’.
This spurred a strongly worded response from Tyrrell, who told Reduxx that her daughter was left beside herself after the incident.
She reportedly wrote: ‘I don’t think it’s right that a man’s wish to “feel most safe’ in women’s only spaces should be deemed a higher priority than the legitimate physical and emotional need for women and girls to actually be safe.
‘You say if we are concerned that we should use the universal change room,’ she continued.
‘But why should all of the women – who the women’s change facility is for – have to leave to accommodate a man?’
The question elicited a response from Dobler – though not the one the mother had likely desired.
In it, she shot back: ‘[E]veryone’s gender identity and expressions are valid.
‘Everyone is welcome in our centers in the changeroom where they feel most safe.
‘Gender expression and identity is protected under BC’s Human Rights Code and we are proud to have a Diversity in Changerooms Policy in our centers.’
She then insisted how ‘there is no evidence to support that providing diversity in changerooms has increased incidents or safety of others,’ while adding ‘I understand that the topic of gender diversity in change rooms can be sensitive.’
She proceeded to remind Tyrrell how she had ‘presented the option of the universal or single stall washrooms or changerooms.
‘Our goal is to create an inclusive environment where everyone feels respected and valued,’ Dobler then added.
‘I understand that this is a complex issue and appreciate the open dialogue and feedback. Thank you for your understanding and for helping us make our community more inclusive.’
A frustrated Tyrrell, in part, replied: ‘I see where you’re coming from now. You actually believe that the 6-foot-tall muscular man with the hairy chest and back who took a shower with my 10-year-old daughter was a woman because he was wearing a bikini.
‘That is magical/religious thinking,’ she concluded.
DailyMail.com has reached out to Facebook profile believed to belong to the mother for more information, as the incident has caught the attention of high-profile figures in the form of Rowling and Navratilova.
Both have long been openly critical of laws focusing on transgender rights, which they view as an affront to women
The 59-year-old Harry Potter author, in turn, tweeted Sunday: ‘Quite something to watch people who were keen to hitch their wagons to #MeToo a few years ago defend this kind of thing, isn’t it?’ referring to how the mom had been seemingly told to be more ‘inclusive.’
‘Then: “male sexual predation is far more widespread than society admits!” Rowling went on. ‘Now: “of course strange men should be able to shower with little girls.”‘
Navratilova, an 18-time Grand Slam champion from Prague who is 68, added: ‘As predicted!!! You can’t have it both ways, left wingers! You just can’t.
‘Protection of women and girls, should always come first,’ she went on. ‘End of [discussion].’
On the British Columbia province’s website, the Canadian government states:'[T]rans people must be recognized and treated as the gender they live in and prefer to express.
‘Businesses and public facilities that fail to accommodate trans-identified males may be subject to “discrimination” claims,’ it adds.