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Kroger Grocery Store's Inclusive Unisex Bathroom Sign Goes Viral

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The Kroger grocery store in Athens, Georgia, has a sign on the door of its unisex bathroom detailing who is allowed to use its facilities. As it turns out, that’s everyone.

Local shopper Tonya Owens posted a photo of Kroger’s signage on the store’s Facebook page on Saturday, reported Atlanta’s NBC 11 Alive. The post has blown up on social media, receiving more than 92,000 likes and 120,000 shares. Owens simply captioned the picture, “Nice job Kroger.”

The sign explains the unisex facility was created “because sometimes gender specific toilets put others into uncomfortable situations.”

Nice job Kroger. This is from a Kroger in Athens, Ga.

Posted by Tonya Owens on Saturday, March 26, 2016

 

The sign reads:

We have a UNISEX bathroom because sometimes gender specific toilets put others into uncomfortable situations. And since we have a lot of our friends coming to see us, we want to provide a place for our friends who are:

  • Dads with daughters
  • Moms with sons
  • Parents with disabled children
  • Those in the LGBTQ community
  • Adults with aging parents who may be mentally or physically disabled

THANK YOU for helping us to provide a safe environment for EVERYONE!

“Kroger stores with unisex bathrooms are designed to serve our customers stated on that sign – parents with young children, parents with disabled children, adults with aging parents, the LGBTQ community and for any other reason such an accommodation might be more convenient,” Glynn Jenkins, public relations director of Kroger’s Atlanta Division, said in a statement to NBC Atlanta 11 Alive. “We are proud to serve each and every customer that walks in our doors.”

Kroger has had the sign posted since 2014, reported NBC Atlanta 11 Alive, but thanks to Owens’ Facebook post (and the attention the state has received after Gov. Nathan Deal’s veto of the “religious freedom” bill), locals are buzzing about the inclusive bathrooms.

In January, a similar sign went viral in a pizza shop in Charlotte, North Carolina.

“The reason I listed several instances [in the letter hanging in the bathroom] is to bring awareness to why gender neutral restrooms are often necessary,” the store’s owner told KSDK. “My hope is to shine a light that it’s not ‘dirty perverts’ or ‘molesters’ eager to hang out in a unisex bathroom, but individuals that have legitimate reasons to be there, and for others to find compassion rather than animosity.”

Originally published: March 31, 2016
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