As kids prepare to head off to summer camp, a conservative group is warning parents that their daughters may not be safe at YMCA facilities across the country.
The American Parents Coalition on Wednesday urged parents to “beware” that the YMCA determines access to overnight cabins, locker rooms, and showers on the basis of gender identity. The coalition says that many YMCA facilities may not inform parents that boys could be bunking or showering with female campers, raising safety and privacy concerns.
“Parents deserve the truth — especially when it involves the possibility that their children could be put in a situation where they’re expected to share private spaces with members of the opposite sex,” American Parents Coalition Executive Director Alleigh Marré told The Daily Wire.
“Too many YMCA branches are putting gender ideology ahead of child safety by allowing locker rooms, showers, and cabins to become a free-for-all. This is unacceptable. Parents must question their local YMCA to ensure their child’s safety and advocate for sex-based spaces where they do not exist.”
Nationally, the YMCA recommends that “all campers and staff have access to the facilities aligned with their gender identity and comfort within facility and resource limitations.” The recommendations also suggest including transgender-identifying individuals in camp marketing.
YMCA camps and facilities across the country have adopted these guidelines, allowing females to be exposed to males in bathrooms or bunk with a person of the opposite sex. For example, Camp Olson in Longville, Minnesota, says access to facilities is based on gender identity, not sex.
“Access to gendered spaces (e.g. restrooms, overnight accommodations) should be based on gender identity. Sex assigned at birth, physical characteristics, or presentation should not dictate the use of gendered space. Trans individuals may select either restroom,” the camp’s guidelines say. “Requiring someone to use a bathroom or other gendered space of the gender they do not identify can be detrimental to an individual’s well-being and safety and puts Camp Olson at risk for discrimination complaints.”
The policy adds that if a female is uncomfortable using the same facility as a male identifying as female, then the female should use an alternate space, saying that “no one should be required to use an alternative restroom because they are trans.”
Rooming assignments at Camp Olson are also based on “gender identity,” with “requests taken into account for comfort and safety. All campers will be asked to select a cabin gender where they will feel most comfortable for that session upon registration.”
Hellbound and Down 