Equal Opportunity

¶ … symbol of equality in society today; the restroom. The author argues that this setting, little as it features in public discussion and debate, offers a very pertinent symbol of inequality between the two groups representing women and men. To demonstrate this, the author uses bathroom lines in public gathering and entertainment centers such as theaters or concert halls. Invariably, women using the rest rooms during intermission times form a line while men take much less time to complete their bathroom activities.

This has leads the author to the conclusion that providing public rest rooms of the same size to men and women does not, in fact, result in gender equality within these spaces. Indeed, the fact that the size equality of such spaces does not take into account the cultural differences between women and men creates marked disadvantages for women.

Some of these differences include that women need their own private urinal spaces, which in effect creates a less efficient space for them to complete their bathroom activities with as much speed as men, who can use a collective urinal at the same time without having to close or lock stall doors. In effect, men therefore need less space. The author considers two basic solutions to the bathroom issue.

The most obvious solution is what Molotch refers to as the "liberal policy," which has as its purpose an increase in size for women's rest rooms relative to spaces allocated to men. Women's rest rooms, according to this solution, will only achieve complete equality for the genders when women and men can use their rest room spaces with equal speed. Alternatively, the "conservative" solution suggests that women should change the way in which they use the bathroom. One such suggestion is creating a collective squatting space for women.

The author notes, however, that although more viable than biological alteration, this solution ignores the cultural background within which women are forced to operate. Women are culturally forced to be more concerned with privacy. In a world where gender violence is usually perpetrated by men against women, women are bound to create a private, safe space in vulnerable settings such as urinals. Furthermore, the concern of women to "prim" while they use the bathroom is also gender-related while culturally encouraged.

Women are expected to be "beautiful" for their men and are therefore more concerned with make-up and scent than men who use bathrooms. The author's view is therefore that the simplest and least expensive solution would be simply to provide more space for women to use public rest room facilities. He furthermore uses this issue to represent other forms of "blindness" as well. Gender blindness has resulted in further inequality for women in restrooms.

Molotch claims that any minority blindness, including that towards color, can have the same result, because it ignores important considerations of difference that must be taken into account. This is probably his most interesting and most compelling argument. In my view, I tend to be in agreement with Molotch. There is not denying that men and.