“For Customers Only: Public Bathrooms and the Making of American Inequality” by Bryant Simon, c.2026, University of Chicago Press, $32.50, 376 pages
That fourth cup of coffee this morning was a really bad idea.
It smelled great and tasted even better. But now, two hours later, you have regrets. You’ll need to deal with that liquid, and there are facilities for that somewhere nearby. But as you’ll see in “For Customers Only” by Bryant Simon, getting to such facilities wasn’t always a “go.”
Ever since America’s first public restroom was built in the mid-1800s, someone has tried to use restrooms for power grabs.
Before then, says Simon, relieving one’s self was a matter of finding a place outdoors. As cities grew, however, elimination as such was perceived as uncouth so taverns, bars, and places men might frequent added rooms for bodily functions. Women, conversely, were often out of luck until a few decades later when stores that catered to ladies established formal restrooms. By then, women had more freedom to leave their homes and to shop alone.
And that was what public restrooms were all about: freedom. But because of racial laws then, Black citizens, shoppers or travelers were not free to use public facilities. Men who were perceived to be effeminate also also policed, lest they use a restroom for something it wasn’t intended for. At various times in history, in fact, having someone monitoring a restroom was common, and sometimes humiliating.
Post-World War II, Black travelers literally needed a book to find permissible restrooms, especially in the South, and they “mapped” where facilities open to them could be found, which was more humiliation. Simon quotes singer Smokey Robinson as saying, “They (white people) would just as soon kill us as let us use a bathroom.” The Civil Rights Movement saw some headway on the issue, but in many instances, sneaking into a “Whites Only” restroom was the only viable (and dangerous) solution.
And as time passed, doing the same with a gender-specific restroom could be similarly dangerous for transgender users, personally and, in modern times, politically.
Chances are, the only time you think of a toilet is when you need to use one or clean one. You probably even know the closest one right now, but you’ll see it differently when you read “For Customers Only,” a unique history of freedom and facilities.
While it’s true that this book may sometimes make you cringe with harsh language and there are anecdotes that you’ll agree are very definitely in the Absolutely-Didn’t-Need-to-Know-That zone, author Bryant Simon peers through decades and into stalls and outhouses to bring readers a mostly fascinating peek at the politics of potties. Those who walk into bathrooms blithely and without a thought today will be astounded at what they’ll find here. Some facts presented are frustrating. Readers who pay attention may be even more angry that bathroom issues are far from over in modern America.
Just be warned about the profanity in this book, and prepare to be uncomfortable sometimes. If you steel yourself for it, “For Customers Only” is an intriguing book that niche-history lovers will want to read.
