Humans peeing: Justice-involved women's access to toilets in public spaces

• Published in: PloS one 2023-03, Vol.18 (3), p.e0282917-e0282917
• Main Authors: Smoyer, Amy B, Pittman, Adam, Borzillo, Peter
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Access; Access control; Affordable housing; Analysis; Bathroom Equipment; Beliefs, opinions and attitudes; Biology and Life Sciences; Bladder; Child; Citizenship; Coronaviruses; COVID-19; Criminal justice; Defecation; Domestic relations; Drug use; Earth Sciences; Employment; Female; Focus Groups; Forecasts and trends; Grooming; Homeless people; Humans; Imprisonment; Local government; Medicine and Health Sciences; Mental health; Mental health services; Physiological aspects; Plumbing fixtures; Psychiatric services; Public restrooms; Public safety; Public spaces; Qualitative research; Security guards; Sexual Behavior; Sleep; Social agencies; Social aspects; Social Sciences; Social service; Social services; Substance abuse; Substance abuse treatment; Substance use; Supervision; Toilet Facilities; Toilets; United States; Urination; Urogenital system; Urology; Women; Women criminals
• ISSN: 1932-6203; 1932-6203
• DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0282917

Justice-involved women face myriad challenges as they negotiate the terms of community supervision and manage the long-term implications and stigma of living with a criminal record. Major tasks that women juggle include securing safe, affordable housing, finding and retaining employment, accessing physical and mental health care (including substance use treatment), and handling relationships with family, friends, children, and intimate partners. In addition to these responsibilities, women must meet their basic physiological needs to eat, sleep, and use the toilet. Women's ability to safely meet their personal care needs may impact their capacity to manage their criminal-legal challenges. This study uses qualitative methods to understand justice-involved women's lived experiences related to urination. Specifically, the study reports on a thematic analysis of 8 focus groups conducted with justice-involved women (n = 58) and the results of a toilet audit conducted in the downtown areas of the small city in the United States where the focus group participants were living. Findings suggest that women had limited access to restrooms and reported urinating outside. Lack of restroom access impacted their engagement with social services support and employment and their ability to travel through public spaces. Women perceived their public toilet options as unsafe, increasing their sense of vulnerability and reinforcing the idea that they did not have full access to citizenship in the community because of their criminal-legal involvement. The exclusion and denial of women's humanity that is perpetuated by a lack of public toilet access impacts women's psychosocial outcomes. City governments, social service agencies, and employers are encouraged to consider how lack of toilet access may impact their public safety and criminal-legal objectives and expand opportunities for people to access safe restroom facilities.