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In North Carolina and other states， a new culture war has erupted. This time， the battlefield is bathrooms.
In March， North Carolina enacted a law （colloquially known as HB21） that requires that people use only bathrooms that correspond to the gender on their birth certificates. The law affects transgender individuals， who identify as a gender other than the one they were assigned at birth. Other states have considered similar bills， to great controversy.
To some people， public bathrooms may seem like unassuming spaces—necessary but not worth too much thought. But these bathroom bills illustrate that public restrooms are the stage for many complex social interactions， and that the availability of a place to relieve oneself is crucial in society.
Public or private？
Gender-segregated public restrooms are either very old or very new， depending on how you look at the question. They arose in the Victorian era， along with widespread plumbing， meaning they’ve been around almost as long as the modern bathroom itself. On the other hand， having privacy for peeing is a relatively modern phenomenon.
The notion of privacy itself is shifting constantly， and it can be hard to determine how people of the past viewed the importance of privacy in their bathroom habits. Ancient Rome， for example， is famous for its multiseater bathrooms， where people sat side by side on benches， without partitions， to do their business. However， there are hints that a concept of privacy might have existed. In Hadrian2’s Villa， a second-century site in Tivoli， Italy， there were multiseat facilities for servants and staff， according to a 2003 paper in the Journal of Roman Archaeology. However， the emperor and high-status guests seem to have had access to relatively private single-seaters.
“The provision of single-seaters， especially for guests， shows that， when space and money were no object， [the elite] preferred single toilets，” wrote study researcher and independent archaeologist Gemma Jansen.
The first gender-segregated public restroom on record was a temporary setup at a Parisian ball in 1739， said Sheila Cavanagh， a sociologist at York University in Canada and author of “Queering Bathrooms： Gender， Sexuality， and the Hygienic Imagination”. The ball’s organizers put a chamber box （essentially a chamber pot in a box with a seat） for men in one room and for women in another.
“Everyone at the ball thought this was sort of a novelty—something sort of eccentric and fun，” Cavanagh said. But for the most part， public facilities in Western nations were male-only until the Victorian era， which meant women had to improvise. If they had to be out and about longer than they could hold their bladders， women in the Victorian era would urinate over a gutter （long Victorian skirts allowed for some privacy）. Some would even carry a small personal device called a urinette that they could use discretely under their skirts and then pour out， Cavanagh said. Strangely， these urinettes were sometimes shaped like the male genitals.
This lack of female facilities reflected a notable attitude about women： that they should stay home. This “urinary leash” remains a problem in some developing nations， said Harvey Molotch， a sociologist at New York University and co-editor of “Toilet： The Public Restroom and the Politics of Sharing”. Women in India today， for example， often have to avoid eating or drinking too much if they have to be out in public， because there is no place for them to go， Molotch told Live Science.
Ladies and gentlemen
Thus， the first gender-segregated restrooms were a major step forward for women. Massachusetts passed a law in 1887 requiring workplaces that employed women to have restrooms for them， according to an article in the Rutgers University Law Review. By the 1920s， such laws were the norm.
Victorian-era Americans were segregated by gender in many spaces， Molotch said. There were ladies-only waiting rooms in train stations， and female-only reading rooms in libraries. As sex segregation has fallen to the wayside in other public spaces， bathrooms remain the last holdout， he said.
“Restrooms are a very funny place， because they’re where the most intimate actions occur that are also in public，” Molotch said. In the U.S.， bathrooms are partitioned with flimsy barriers with lots of gaps， in part because of anxiety over what might go on in a fully private stall. Sex and drugs are the most common of these concerns， he said.
Meanwhile， people observe rigid social rituals to keep up the illusion of privacy. Men， for example， can’t be seen looking at the genitals of other men， Molotch said， but also can’t be perceived as trying not to look.
“The disgust attached to excretion makes people bothered by the sounds and smells of others， and the shame of this private action makes many people concerned about being witnessed in the act， even indirectly，” said Nicholas Haslam， a psychology professor at the University of Melbourne and author of “Psychology in the Bathroom”. Excretion is seen as unfeminine， Haslam told Live Science， so women are under particular pressure to hide their bathroom activities， especially from men. “Finally， the act of going to the bathroom makes many people feel vulnerable， exposed， and unsafe，” Haslam said.
Bathroom bills like North Carolina’s often reflect ideas about sex and safety， Cavanagh said. However， there are no documented instances of a transgender person attacking anyone in a public bathroom， she said. A survey published in the Journal of Public Management and Social Policy in 2013 did find， however， that 70 percent of the transgender respondents from the Washington， D.C. area had experienced harassment or assault in bathrooms， or had been denied access to facilities.
Ultimately， fears over allowing bathrooms to be used by people of different birth sexes may have more to do with the symbolic nature of public restrooms than with practical concerns. Transgender people challenge the notion that a person’s gender and their biological sex at birth are one and the same in all cases， Molotch said， which makes some people uncomfortable. However， he suspects that the backlash will simmer down and that gender-segregated toilets will persist， with an agreement that everyone will mind their own business.
“We all know there is nothing more important to transgender people than to ‘pass，’” Molotch said， meaning that transgender people want others who casually encounter them to assume they are just like all of the other members of the gender they identify with. Most transgender people do not want others to wonder whether they are transgender， he said.
北卡罗来纳和其他一些州已爆发一场新的文化论战，这一次争论的焦点是厕所。
北卡罗来纳州三月份通过了一项法案（俗称HB2法案），规定人们只能按出生时的生理性别使用对应的公厕。此法案影响了跨性别群体的权益，因为他们对自身性别的认同与出生证上不同。火上浇油的是其他一些州也在考慮通过类似的法案。
有些人可能认为公厕这种场所毫不起眼，虽不可或缺但不值得投入过多关注。但这些厕所法案的出台不仅显示公厕是许多社会群体复杂角力的舞台，也说明提供场所供人方便在社会生活中是非常重要的。
公共还是私密？
男女分设的公厕既可以说由来已久也可算新生事物，这取决于如何看待这个问题。男女分厕出现于维多利亚时期，随着管道系统的广泛铺设而兴起，与现代卫生间几乎有着同样长的历史。另一方面，如厕时保持隐私也是一个相对现代的现象。
隐私的概念并非一成不变，所以很难判断前人对如厕隐私看得有多重要。比如，众所周知古罗马的厕所是多厕位的，大家肩并肩坐在长凳上方便，彼此间毫无遮拦。然而有线索显示隐私的概念可能已经存在。据《罗马考古学》杂志2003年发表的一篇论文，在哈德良别墅，一片位于意大利蒂沃利的二世纪建筑旧址，仆人和雇工使用多厕位的公共设施，而皇帝和身份显贵的客人则似乎会使用相对私密的单独厕位。
“单独的厕位，尤其是为客人提供的，说明当空间和金钱不是问题的时候，（精英阶层）更愿意使用独立的卫生间。”研究学者兼独立考古学家杰玛·詹森写道。
加拿大约克大学社会学家及《跨性别公厕：性别、性和卫生联想》一书的作者希拉·卡瓦纳说，有案可查的第一间分男女的公厕是1739年巴黎一场舞会上的临时设施。舞会的主办方将“坐便器”（就是夜壶放在一个带座位的盒子里）分放在两个房间，一间供男宾使用，一间供女宾使用。
“舞会的所有来宾都觉得这很新奇——有点怪但很有趣。”卡瓦纳说。
但直到维多利亚时期，大多数西方国家的公共设施都只为男性服务，这意味着女性只能随机应“便”。如果维多利亚时期的女性不得不出门而且时间长到憋不住，她们会在排水沟上小便（维多利亚式长裙多少可以维护一点隐私）。卡瓦纳说，有些人甚至会携带一种叫作小便器的私人小物件，可以放到裙子内使用然后倒掉。而怪异的是，这些小便器有时会被做成男性外生殖器的模样。 这种女性公共设施的缺失反映了當时社会对待女性的明显态度：女人就应该待在家里。纽约大学社会学家及《厕所：公共卫生间和共享政治》一书的合编者哈维·莫洛奇说，这种“便池约束”在一些发展中国家仍然存在。比如在印度，至今女性外出前都会尽量少吃东西少喝水，因为外面没有女厕可以去，莫洛奇对科学鲜闻网说。
女厕和男厕
因此，第一间男女分设的公厕的出现标志着女性社会地位的大幅提升。据《罗格斯大学法律评论》上一篇文章记载，马萨诸塞州于1887年立法规定，有女性雇员的工作场所必须设置女厕。到了1920年代，此种法律条款已司空见惯。
莫洛奇说，在维多利亚时期的美国，许多公共场所的设施都男女分设。火车站有女士候车室，图书馆有女士阅览室。他说，当其他公共场所取消了性别隔离，只有公厕还坚守着男女有别的最后阵地。
“公厕是个非常有趣的地方，人在这里做着最私密的事，可这儿却是个公共场所。”莫洛奇说。在美国，公厕的隔断单薄且有很多缝隙，部分原因是人们担心在完全私密的小隔间里不知会发生什么。性行为和毒品，大部分人担心这两样，他说。
同时，人们遵守着严格的社会礼仪以维护隐私的假象。比如，莫洛奇说，男人是不能被发现在看其他男性的生殖器的，而且也不能被人认为他是试图不看。
“排泄物让人嫌恶，所以他人方便时发出的声音和气味会令人不快，这种私密行为带来的羞耻感让很多人担心被人看到，甚或间接察觉到自己在方便。”墨尔本大学心理学教授及《卫生间心理学》一书的作者尼古拉斯·哈斯拉姆说道。排泄行为被认为不够淑女，哈斯拉姆对科学鲜闻网说，所以在这一压力下女性极力避免被他人，尤其是男性看到自己上厕所。
“最终，上厕所这件事让很多人感到敏感、暴露、不安全。”哈斯拉姆说。
卡瓦纳表示，类似北卡罗来纳州这样的厕所法案通常反映出性与安全的观念。然而，她说并没有记载案例表明跨性别者曾在公厕内攻击他人。而2013年刊登在《公共管理和社会政策》杂志上的一份调查却显示，来自华盛顿特区的跨性别受访者中，有70%曾在公厕内遭遇骚扰或攻击，或者曾被拒绝进入。
归根结底，对允许生理性别不同的人共用卫生间的担忧，更多地与公厕的象征性本质有关，而不是出自实际考虑。通常人们认为性别是由其出生时的生理性别决定的，所有情况下都是如此，但跨性别者对这一观念提出质疑，莫洛奇说，这令某些人感到不适。不过他认为这些猛烈的反对终会平息，而男女分设的厕所也会继续存在，与此同时大家将达成以下共识——少管别人的闲事。
莫洛奇说：“我们都知道，对跨性别者来说没有什么比‘接纳’更重要。”这意味着如果你偶遇了跨性别者，他们希望你能把他们当作其自我认同的那个性别中的一员。他说，大多数跨性别者不希望别人好奇他们到底是不是跨性别的人。
（译者为“《英语世界》杯”翻译大赛获奖者）
In March， North Carolina enacted a law （colloquially known as HB21） that requires that people use only bathrooms that correspond to the gender on their birth certificates. The law affects transgender individuals， who identify as a gender other than the one they were assigned at birth. Other states have considered similar bills， to great controversy.
To some people， public bathrooms may seem like unassuming spaces—necessary but not worth too much thought. But these bathroom bills illustrate that public restrooms are the stage for many complex social interactions， and that the availability of a place to relieve oneself is crucial in society.
Public or private？
Gender-segregated public restrooms are either very old or very new， depending on how you look at the question. They arose in the Victorian era， along with widespread plumbing， meaning they’ve been around almost as long as the modern bathroom itself. On the other hand， having privacy for peeing is a relatively modern phenomenon.
The notion of privacy itself is shifting constantly， and it can be hard to determine how people of the past viewed the importance of privacy in their bathroom habits. Ancient Rome， for example， is famous for its multiseater bathrooms， where people sat side by side on benches， without partitions， to do their business. However， there are hints that a concept of privacy might have existed. In Hadrian2’s Villa， a second-century site in Tivoli， Italy， there were multiseat facilities for servants and staff， according to a 2003 paper in the Journal of Roman Archaeology. However， the emperor and high-status guests seem to have had access to relatively private single-seaters.
“The provision of single-seaters， especially for guests， shows that， when space and money were no object， [the elite] preferred single toilets，” wrote study researcher and independent archaeologist Gemma Jansen.
The first gender-segregated public restroom on record was a temporary setup at a Parisian ball in 1739， said Sheila Cavanagh， a sociologist at York University in Canada and author of “Queering Bathrooms： Gender， Sexuality， and the Hygienic Imagination”. The ball’s organizers put a chamber box （essentially a chamber pot in a box with a seat） for men in one room and for women in another.
“Everyone at the ball thought this was sort of a novelty—something sort of eccentric and fun，” Cavanagh said. But for the most part， public facilities in Western nations were male-only until the Victorian era， which meant women had to improvise. If they had to be out and about longer than they could hold their bladders， women in the Victorian era would urinate over a gutter （long Victorian skirts allowed for some privacy）. Some would even carry a small personal device called a urinette that they could use discretely under their skirts and then pour out， Cavanagh said. Strangely， these urinettes were sometimes shaped like the male genitals.
This lack of female facilities reflected a notable attitude about women： that they should stay home. This “urinary leash” remains a problem in some developing nations， said Harvey Molotch， a sociologist at New York University and co-editor of “Toilet： The Public Restroom and the Politics of Sharing”. Women in India today， for example， often have to avoid eating or drinking too much if they have to be out in public， because there is no place for them to go， Molotch told Live Science.
Ladies and gentlemen
Thus， the first gender-segregated restrooms were a major step forward for women. Massachusetts passed a law in 1887 requiring workplaces that employed women to have restrooms for them， according to an article in the Rutgers University Law Review. By the 1920s， such laws were the norm.
Victorian-era Americans were segregated by gender in many spaces， Molotch said. There were ladies-only waiting rooms in train stations， and female-only reading rooms in libraries. As sex segregation has fallen to the wayside in other public spaces， bathrooms remain the last holdout， he said.
“Restrooms are a very funny place， because they’re where the most intimate actions occur that are also in public，” Molotch said. In the U.S.， bathrooms are partitioned with flimsy barriers with lots of gaps， in part because of anxiety over what might go on in a fully private stall. Sex and drugs are the most common of these concerns， he said.
Meanwhile， people observe rigid social rituals to keep up the illusion of privacy. Men， for example， can’t be seen looking at the genitals of other men， Molotch said， but also can’t be perceived as trying not to look.
“The disgust attached to excretion makes people bothered by the sounds and smells of others， and the shame of this private action makes many people concerned about being witnessed in the act， even indirectly，” said Nicholas Haslam， a psychology professor at the University of Melbourne and author of “Psychology in the Bathroom”. Excretion is seen as unfeminine， Haslam told Live Science， so women are under particular pressure to hide their bathroom activities， especially from men. “Finally， the act of going to the bathroom makes many people feel vulnerable， exposed， and unsafe，” Haslam said.
Bathroom bills like North Carolina’s often reflect ideas about sex and safety， Cavanagh said. However， there are no documented instances of a transgender person attacking anyone in a public bathroom， she said. A survey published in the Journal of Public Management and Social Policy in 2013 did find， however， that 70 percent of the transgender respondents from the Washington， D.C. area had experienced harassment or assault in bathrooms， or had been denied access to facilities.
Ultimately， fears over allowing bathrooms to be used by people of different birth sexes may have more to do with the symbolic nature of public restrooms than with practical concerns. Transgender people challenge the notion that a person’s gender and their biological sex at birth are one and the same in all cases， Molotch said， which makes some people uncomfortable. However， he suspects that the backlash will simmer down and that gender-segregated toilets will persist， with an agreement that everyone will mind their own business.
“We all know there is nothing more important to transgender people than to ‘pass，’” Molotch said， meaning that transgender people want others who casually encounter them to assume they are just like all of the other members of the gender they identify with. Most transgender people do not want others to wonder whether they are transgender， he said.
北卡罗来纳和其他一些州已爆发一场新的文化论战，这一次争论的焦点是厕所。
北卡罗来纳州三月份通过了一项法案（俗称HB2法案），规定人们只能按出生时的生理性别使用对应的公厕。此法案影响了跨性别群体的权益，因为他们对自身性别的认同与出生证上不同。火上浇油的是其他一些州也在考慮通过类似的法案。
有些人可能认为公厕这种场所毫不起眼，虽不可或缺但不值得投入过多关注。但这些厕所法案的出台不仅显示公厕是许多社会群体复杂角力的舞台，也说明提供场所供人方便在社会生活中是非常重要的。
公共还是私密？
男女分设的公厕既可以说由来已久也可算新生事物，这取决于如何看待这个问题。男女分厕出现于维多利亚时期，随着管道系统的广泛铺设而兴起，与现代卫生间几乎有着同样长的历史。另一方面，如厕时保持隐私也是一个相对现代的现象。
隐私的概念并非一成不变，所以很难判断前人对如厕隐私看得有多重要。比如，众所周知古罗马的厕所是多厕位的，大家肩并肩坐在长凳上方便，彼此间毫无遮拦。然而有线索显示隐私的概念可能已经存在。据《罗马考古学》杂志2003年发表的一篇论文，在哈德良别墅，一片位于意大利蒂沃利的二世纪建筑旧址，仆人和雇工使用多厕位的公共设施，而皇帝和身份显贵的客人则似乎会使用相对私密的单独厕位。
“单独的厕位，尤其是为客人提供的，说明当空间和金钱不是问题的时候，（精英阶层）更愿意使用独立的卫生间。”研究学者兼独立考古学家杰玛·詹森写道。
加拿大约克大学社会学家及《跨性别公厕：性别、性和卫生联想》一书的作者希拉·卡瓦纳说，有案可查的第一间分男女的公厕是1739年巴黎一场舞会上的临时设施。舞会的主办方将“坐便器”（就是夜壶放在一个带座位的盒子里）分放在两个房间，一间供男宾使用，一间供女宾使用。
“舞会的所有来宾都觉得这很新奇——有点怪但很有趣。”卡瓦纳说。
但直到维多利亚时期，大多数西方国家的公共设施都只为男性服务，这意味着女性只能随机应“便”。如果维多利亚时期的女性不得不出门而且时间长到憋不住，她们会在排水沟上小便（维多利亚式长裙多少可以维护一点隐私）。卡瓦纳说，有些人甚至会携带一种叫作小便器的私人小物件，可以放到裙子内使用然后倒掉。而怪异的是，这些小便器有时会被做成男性外生殖器的模样。 这种女性公共设施的缺失反映了當时社会对待女性的明显态度：女人就应该待在家里。纽约大学社会学家及《厕所：公共卫生间和共享政治》一书的合编者哈维·莫洛奇说，这种“便池约束”在一些发展中国家仍然存在。比如在印度，至今女性外出前都会尽量少吃东西少喝水，因为外面没有女厕可以去，莫洛奇对科学鲜闻网说。
女厕和男厕
因此，第一间男女分设的公厕的出现标志着女性社会地位的大幅提升。据《罗格斯大学法律评论》上一篇文章记载，马萨诸塞州于1887年立法规定，有女性雇员的工作场所必须设置女厕。到了1920年代，此种法律条款已司空见惯。
莫洛奇说，在维多利亚时期的美国，许多公共场所的设施都男女分设。火车站有女士候车室，图书馆有女士阅览室。他说，当其他公共场所取消了性别隔离，只有公厕还坚守着男女有别的最后阵地。
“公厕是个非常有趣的地方，人在这里做着最私密的事，可这儿却是个公共场所。”莫洛奇说。在美国，公厕的隔断单薄且有很多缝隙，部分原因是人们担心在完全私密的小隔间里不知会发生什么。性行为和毒品，大部分人担心这两样，他说。
同时，人们遵守着严格的社会礼仪以维护隐私的假象。比如，莫洛奇说，男人是不能被发现在看其他男性的生殖器的，而且也不能被人认为他是试图不看。
“排泄物让人嫌恶，所以他人方便时发出的声音和气味会令人不快，这种私密行为带来的羞耻感让很多人担心被人看到，甚或间接察觉到自己在方便。”墨尔本大学心理学教授及《卫生间心理学》一书的作者尼古拉斯·哈斯拉姆说道。排泄行为被认为不够淑女，哈斯拉姆对科学鲜闻网说，所以在这一压力下女性极力避免被他人，尤其是男性看到自己上厕所。
“最终，上厕所这件事让很多人感到敏感、暴露、不安全。”哈斯拉姆说。
卡瓦纳表示，类似北卡罗来纳州这样的厕所法案通常反映出性与安全的观念。然而，她说并没有记载案例表明跨性别者曾在公厕内攻击他人。而2013年刊登在《公共管理和社会政策》杂志上的一份调查却显示，来自华盛顿特区的跨性别受访者中，有70%曾在公厕内遭遇骚扰或攻击，或者曾被拒绝进入。
归根结底，对允许生理性别不同的人共用卫生间的担忧，更多地与公厕的象征性本质有关，而不是出自实际考虑。通常人们认为性别是由其出生时的生理性别决定的，所有情况下都是如此，但跨性别者对这一观念提出质疑，莫洛奇说，这令某些人感到不适。不过他认为这些猛烈的反对终会平息，而男女分设的厕所也会继续存在，与此同时大家将达成以下共识——少管别人的闲事。
莫洛奇说：“我们都知道，对跨性别者来说没有什么比‘接纳’更重要。”这意味着如果你偶遇了跨性别者，他们希望你能把他们当作其自我认同的那个性别中的一员。他说，大多数跨性别者不希望别人好奇他们到底是不是跨性别的人。
（译者为“《英语世界》杯”翻译大赛获奖者）