24 theses or disputation on the social power of men to invade Women-only gym spaces

Download a two-page printable copy of this statement.

OVERVIEW

This statement reflects a view grounded in the legal provisions of Australian law, the lived experiences of Women, and the need for special measures that enable Women to overcome systemic disadvantages in a male-dominated and male-created society.

IT IS NOT UNLAWFUL TO PROVIDE FEMALE-ONLY SPACES

1. Women-only gyms are for Women, not for men. 
2. Women-only gyms provide Women with safety, privacy, and dignity.
3. Women-only gyms help to address inequality for Women, and female-only spaces are necessary to attempt to address historical and systemic imbalances faced by females in relation to males.
4. Women have a right to female-only spaces. This is lawful under the Sex Discrimination Act 1984 (Cth). Of particular note, under section 7D(1)(a) it is not unlawful to provide female-only spaces for Women for the purposes of achieving substantive equality with men. The Federal Court has upheld the legality of special measures for female-only exercise classes in Walker v Cormack [2011] FCA 861.
5. Various Australian human rights and sporting bodies misrepresent the Act and sow fear amongst gym owners and sporting associations that they are acting unlawfully when providing female-only spaces on the basis of sex.

WOMEN ARE MARGINALISED AND DISADVANTAGED IN OUR MALE-DOMINATED SOCIETY

6. For centuries, Women have been marginalised in fitness, health care, and in public life. The provision of Women-only gyms does not solve this deep historical disadvantage, but Women’s spaces are a necessary step in correcting this situation. Women have a right to spaces without the presence of men, which disrupts and limits us. 
7. Allowing men into Women-only spaces undermines the cultural and social significance of these spaces. This diminishes the ability of Women to carve out environments that cater to our unique needs and to our right to safety, privacy, and dignity.

MEN DO NOT HAVE A RIGHT TO ENTER FEMALE-ONLY SPACES

8. Women-only spaces are not a new concept; they have long been used to counteract the patriarchal structures that restrict Women’s freedom of movement and restrict our opportunities. 
9. Exclusion is an important organising principle in society to protect Women’s safety, privacy, and dignity. The false notion of ‘inclusion’ at all costs means the forced entry of men into Women-only spaces, including gyms. 
10. Men are exercising their social power when they invade or claim access to female-only spaces. Respect for Women’s spaces is integral in the attempt to achieve equality in a society where men are the dominant sex class.
11. Men (as the dominant sex class) should not place Women (as the sex class that men dominate) in the position of having to say ‘no’ to men. Those in the position of power (men) have a duty to exercise their power ethically and morally and, therefore, men should not ask to access female-only spaces. Men’s invasion of female-only spaces is a misuse of male power, privilege, and entitlement. 
12. Men who ‘identify’ as Women also do not have a right to enter female-only spaces. Despite ‘gender identity’ being written into legislation, it does not dislodge Women’s rights to female-only spaces on the basis of our female sex. 

THE SOCIAL AND PUBLIC DEFAULT IS MALE, NOT FEMALE

13. The default social and public setting is male. Men dominate gyms, workplaces, sports, and public life. Men do not need special access to female-only spaces to address social or public disadvantage.
14. Open public space in society carries the male gaze. Women have a right to exercise and to disrobe away from the male gaze, to be free from being stared or leered at, from being judged, or from otherwise feeling objectified by men.
15. Women face sexual harassment and body policing in gyms with men. Women-only gyms offer environments free from this male harassment, allowing Women to focus on our health and fitness without the scrutiny of men.
16. The objectification and sexualisation of Women’s bodies in public spaces by men – including in gyms – has damaging psychological and emotional effects that we carry internally and that restrict our conduct and movement in public. Female-only spaces free Women from male surveillance.
17. Women-only gyms are an attempt to provide Women with the same access to fitness and health opportunities as men without the disadvantages females face in spaces where men are present. 

MEN ARE NOT DEPRIVED

18. Men are not deprived of gym access and can exercise at any other non-female-only gym they choose, including those that are predominantly male – which is all gyms other than those that are female-only gyms. 
19. The ‘equality’ of mixed-sex gyms is a myth. Mixed-sex gyms are, by default, male-dominated spaces. The environment in a mixed-gender gym reflects the wider societal imbalances, where Women must negotiate our physicality, safety and men’s social expectations in the face of male authority and dominance, and under the conditions set by men’s default social licence.

 OUR FEMALE SOCIALISATION TO ‘BE KIND’ AND ACCOMMODATING IS USED AGAINST US

20. Women are socialised to not protest at male invasions of our spaces on account of historically embedded power dynamics where men hold the power. It is not in our interests as an oppressed sex class to challenge the power of the oppressor sex class, as the consequences for us include violence and further marginalisation. Men may ask if they can enter, but they know we cannot say ‘no’.
21. The language of ‘equality’ is used by men to mask male entitlement and is weaponised to argue against female-only spaces or affirmative actions that are designed to address imbalances.
22. Women self-exclude from spaces with men. Women should not be placed in the position of having to make a choice between exercising with the possibility of men being present in a female-only space and exercising in another way – often in private – or not at all. 
23. Men exploit Women in a culture of ‘female service.’ Women end up doing all sorts of labour for men. When men want access to female-only, female-run spaces, this can include the administrative labour of organising, operating, and advertising fitness groups for men; opening the previously Women-only gyms that men want access to; taking and processing fees; organising insurance; and making men ‘feel welcome’ in the previously female-only space – this latter being emotional labour. 
24. If men are given even part-time access to women-only gyms, they will be exploiting and benefitting from the physical labour of Women that was meant to benefit Women. Women will be the ones setting up gym spaces for men-only groups and then cleaning and putting away equipment after the men have finished, as well as straightening the space, ready for the next group. 

CONCLUSION

The provision of Women-only gyms is a reasonable and necessary measure, allowed under Australian law, to help achieve substantive equality between the sexes. Men have every right to exercise in any other kind of gym, but they should not be allowed to undermine or diminish the importance of spaces specifically created for Women’s safety, privacy, and dignity. Women-only gyms should be protected and respected as a space where Women can exercise free from the social dominance and entitlement of men.