Philadelphia, PA (KTVU) - Taking selfies and going to the bathroom usually don’t go hand in hand, but at the Democratic National Convention it’s apparently the thing to do.
A gender neutral bathroom has been placed on the main floor of the convention site at the Wells Fargo Arena and it’s getting a lot of attention. I stood outside the bathroom (creepily) for 15 minutes, counting how many people went in and how many stopped to take pictures.
During that time I counted 24 women and 11 men go into the restroom. Of course I really don’t know which gender they were born with, which means my survey was pretty much a waste of time.
But people were taking the time to stop and take pictures. I spotted at least five people take out their cameras to take pictures of the sign - Some even took selfies. One TV news reporter had his cameraman follow him as he walked by the sign and pointed.
There were also others who walked right in, not expecting to see someone of the opposite sex inside.
“I think the first time one does anything, there’s an apprehension. I think the second time they go in that gender neutral bathroom there won’t be any issue for them whatsoever,” said Malcolm Lazin, the founder and director of the Equality Forum.
Lazin said his group wasn’t behind the bathroom, but did give it a go.
“I went into my stall, women went into their stall, it didn’t seem like anyone had any problem.”
For the record, the people who did come back out and look at the sign didn’t change their mind. They went right back in and presumably finished their business.
Some admit, though, going in made them a little uncomfortable.
“The first time I went in it was a little strange,” said a radio reporter from Salt Lake City who didn’t want to be identified.
“I thought it would make women uncomfortable, but they didn’t seem to care at all,” he said.
I also tried out the gender neutral bathroom, and no I didn’t care if men were in there - Until I walked in my stall and saw someone had left the seat up.