Transgender activist group says San Francisco spa enacting exclusionary policies
A group of transgender rights advocates is calling for a boycott of a San Francisco spa they say is enacting anti-trans, exclusionary policies.
"It's exclusion. It's discrimination. It goes against everything that I came here for," said Breath Mormorer, a protester.
Breath Mormorer said she was told she would not be allowed to participate in a "Lady's Night" at Archimedes Banya unless she remained clothed at all times inside the clothing-optional spa.
"I came from Alabama specifically to escape that type of prejudice and hate. And I got here and I found out this city has just as much of it," said Mormorer.
The Russian bathhouse offers one women's only night and one men's only night each month.
On their website, they say the nights are to "shelter religious preferences" of women and men in their community, therefore they limit participation to sex assigned at birth.
"It kind of set off some alarm bells for me because in a lot of pre-Christian Slavic cultures there was a lot of, gender and sexuality was much more fluid than, and it was put down by the Christians, but even without all that, there are a lot of Catholic, Orthodox Jewish and Muslim people who are trans allies if not trans themselves," said Jordan, a protester.
Jordan said she herself is of Slavic origin.
To try and reach a compromise the spa put out a statement saying they will offer one inclusive women's only night, where trans women will be welcome, and another "Cultural and Religious Women's Night" where only those assigned female at birth will be allowed in.
Jordan said that's no compromise at all.
"That response is really discriminatory when you think about it because if you had a night where you excluded, say a certain race, that would not fly and we're just saying, trans exclusive nights won't fly," said Jordan.
"Offer them to us every day. We're not any different individuals," said Dakota Rose Austin, a protester.
Dakota Rose Austin said the controversy at the spa seems to be just another example of what she says is an increase in anti-trans policies across the country.
"As Latinos, as trans, as queer, as African American, the fear is turned now. If you weaponize DEI and affirmative action and all these other things that were a benefit of everyone in America and you weaponize them against us, now I'm in fear," said Austin.
Protesters including Mormorer said they plan to continue to picket outside of the spa until they change their policy, allowing trans customers every night of the month.
