It has recently come to the Wayne State class of 2024’s attention that there is a mandatory dress-code required to enter/operate the facilities at the campus fitness center. When an anonymous student approached the manager of the facilities as to why there was a dress code, she was told “there are creeps who come to the gym” and the policy is there “to keep everyone safe.” When asked why these predators were not banned from the gym, the student was met with the response: “we tried and it didn’t work.” Wayne’s mandated dress code policy is problematic because it follows the notion that as long as women cover up, they won’t be subject to sexual harassment. This is a textbook case of victim blaming; and is far too outdated a policy to still be in place in the #1 most diverse school in the state of Michigan.
The anonymous student was also told that she could work out in the “women’s only” section; which is problematic for several reasons as well. Gender nonconforming students have no safe space in the gym, and there is a camera pointed right at the women’s only section, meaning young women who choose to workout without their Hijabs (a head covering worn in public by some Muslim women for religious reasons) are being recorded without their consent with their hair exposed. 

We are calling for:

The removal of cameras in private areas 

Gender inclusive policies and facilities 

A ZERO tolerance policy for inappropriate behavior towards any Wayne State students/staff while they use their gym for various recreational purposes.