Sex Segregation - Public Facilities

Public Facilities

In almost all parts of the world, places for activities which involve nudity – for example, showers, toilets, changing rooms – are usually segregated by sex. There are exceptions to this: clothing-optional beaches and art classrooms for figure drawing are generally not segregated. Saunas and baths may or may not be, depending on the culture.

The degree of segregation can vary. In some places, separate changing rooms for men and women are the norm, while elsewhere, a single change room with cubicles is normal. With the widespread practice of groping women in crowded public places (e.g. street harassment or eve teasing), some countries have designated women's parking spaces, women-only passenger cars or compartments on trains.

In most countries of the world, prisons are segregated. Often contact with prisoners of the opposite sex is forbidden or limited to specific moments. Prison officers are often of the same sex as the inmates.