A district judge in Washington state has ruled that Olympus Spa, a women-only spa where nudity is compulsory, must allow pre-op transgender women with penises to utilize their facilities.
This ruling comes after the spa sued the Washington State Human Rights Commission (WSHRC) when they were previously ordered to change its ‘discriminatory rules’ which is ‘biological women only’ policy.
Haven Wilvich, a biological male, complained when his membership application was declined by the Korean-style spa. He was allegedly told that “transgender women without surgery are not welcome.”
The spa’s response prompted Wilvich to file a complaint with the WSHRC in May 2020.
According to the Daily Mail, the Pacific Northwest state of Washington is one of several Democrat-led regions where transgender individuals are allowed to use facilities that correspond with their identified gender, regardless of their physical status.
The outlet reported:
In her judgement, District Court Judge Barbara Jacobs Rothstein upheld the ruling made by the WSHRC and said that the measures taken to the prevent the spa from having a female-only policy had been lawful.
In the initial complaint to the commission, Wilvich said she was a transgender woman who was ‘biologically male’ and had not undergone sex reassignment surgery.
Wilvich alleged that she had gone to the spa in January 2020 in search of a service but was discriminated against.
She claims that Olympus Spa told her that ‘transgender women without surgery are not welcome because it could make other customers and staff uncomfortable.’