Public Women and the Public Convenience: An Hour with Barbara Penner

What do you call a woman who’s not at home, and needs a private place to pee? A “public woman,” or “prostitute.” At least that’s what London’s men thought at the turn of the 20th Century. How far have we come? This World Toilet Day (Nov 19), Shawn “The Puru” Shafner talks with Barbara Penner, pedigreed architectural history expert*, feminist, and prolific toilet academic. Wanna know more about that space we call Bathroom? She literally wrote the book, along with many others. From Victorian women who peed covertly in church pews, to the tinkle sprinkle left on the toilet seat, join us for a wide-reaching conversation that unpacks the politics of who gets to pee, and where. Then stop chipping away at the glass ceiling, and turn your hammer to the urinal.

*“Senior Lecturer in Architectural History at the Bartlett School of Architecture, University College London”

Also mentioned: UCL, Le Corbusier, built environment, Social justice, Accessibility, Women's rights, Gender rights, Olga Gershenson, Ladies and Gents: Public Toilets and Gender, bladder, Christina Irene, adult diapers, Canada, UK, Niagara Falls, Athens, cistern, Beatriz Colomina, Sexuality and Space, Camden Town, George Bernard Shaw, public baths, New York City, NYC, transgender access, class, Louis Bourdaloue, muff, menstruation, MHM, work, George Waring, privacy, Simone de Beauvoir, The Second Sex, potty training, taboo, Alexander Kira, infrastructure systems, Cornell University, Center for Housing and Environmental Studies, American Standard, NYU, Laura Noren, Harvey Molotch, unisex