An Australian traveller in France who complained there was a trans woman in a female only hostel bathrooom was shocked to be told that she could be breaking the law.
Melbourne woman Cassandra was visiting the French southern central city of Lyon to watch the Olympics women’s soccer on July 26 and 27.
Cassandra said she booked a women only dorm with an ensuite at Lyon’s Alter Hostel through the app Hostelworld and arrived there late on the night of July 25.
She said upon entering her dorm room the curtains were drawn and everyone was in their beds asleep so she was unaware of who her roommates were.
On the first morning she was shocked to see a trans woman, who she initially thought was a man, in the bathroom. She asked to speak to the hostel manager.
‘I showed my visibly shaking hands from my bathroom privacy being breached,’ Cassandra said.
‘His response was ‘It’s not my issue, it’s not my problem’.
‘I said, I paid for a women’s only service can I have my money back?’
Melbourne woman Cassandra complained there was a trans woman in her designated female toilets at a France hostel
Cassandra said she showed the hostel manager that her hands were shaking from her encounter
‘The manager said the hostel classified them (the guest) as a woman. He told me my stance was political and not factual.’
Despite her request to have the conversation in private, Cassandra said it was conducted in earshot of others at the hotel, including the 20-year-old American trans guest she encountered in the bathroom.
Cassandra wrote Hostelworld to get her booking fee refunded.
They gave her a six-month voucher and promised to follow up with the hostel.
However, when Hostelworld forwarded the hostel’s response, it accused Cassandra of being transphobic, explaining that the person she complained about was a trans woman.
The hostel defended its decision, stating it does not tolerate transphobia.
‘This guest was transphobic,’ the hostel wrote.
‘What she did not mention is that the “man” that was in the bathroom was a woman (man who transited to woman so identifying as a woman which mean she IS a woman).’
‘Her personal opinion on the subject does not matter. In France, being transphobic is prohibited by law. She clearly refused to admit this person was a woman.
‘Nevertheless, I decided to refund her the last night and kindly pleased her to find a hostel that will meet her needs (spoiler: absolutely all hostels in Lyon admit trans people)
‘This guest is lucky we didn’t press charges on her. We are not sorry for her as we do not tolerate such behavior.’
Discrimination on the basis of ‘sexual identity’ has been banned since 2012 in France. In 2016, the term ‘sexual identity’ was replaced by ‘gender identity,’ with the law covering transphobia.
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