Scottish schoolgirls have refused to use gender-neutral toilets after boys indulged in misbehaviour and wreaked havoc in the toilets, waving sanitary pads like flags and urinating in the sanitary bins, according to reports. A councillor admitted that a number of girls have not not used the unisex toilets for days because of the vandalism by the boys and said that the boys had started playing with tampons.
As per reports, gender-neutral toilets were opened in Scottish educational institutes and became a trend following warnings from political parties and activists who had claimed that the schools faced the threat of lawsuits being filed against them if they did not provide the same. Scottish schools have been incorporating these unisex bathrooms in their new constructions or as a part of renovation. Introduction of unisex toilets have also been attributed to minimizing costs, creating more space and diversity and building an inclusive environment.
However, the process of integration of these ‘gender-blind’ ‘gender-neutral’ toilets with regular restrooms in the Scottish schools have faced a backlash from the parents who have opposed such toilets in secondary schools and the fact that this might lead to 12-year-old girls sharing sanitary facilities with 18-year-old boys. 56% of the Scottish people opposed the unisex toilets in schools according to a recent poll while only 21% supported them.
However, 22% percent of Scots said they supported unisex toilets only if they existed separately alongside the regular single sex bathrooms. A feminist campaigner Marion Calder said, “I would like to know who is pressing for gender-neutral toilets because it’s not parents,” adding “I suspect it is coming from LGBTQ guidance award schemes.”