US Court Rules: Women-Only Spa Cannot Exclude Transgender Women
In a landmark ruling, a federal appeals court in the United States has ordered a Korean spa in Lynnwood, Washington, to allow transgender women access to its services.
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Washington (Prativad News Desk): In a landmark ruling, a federal appeals court in the United States has ordered a Korean spa in Lynnwood, Washington, to allow transgender women access to its services. The court held that denying access to trans women — particularly those who have not undergone gender-confirmation surgery — violates Washington state’s anti-discrimination laws.
The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit ruled 2-1 on Thursday that Olympus Spa must revise its admission policy to comply with the law. The court clarified that enforcing the state’s anti-discrimination law does not infringe upon the constitutional rights of the spa’s owners, including their First Amendment protections such as religious freedom, freedom of speech, or freedom of association.
Olympus Spa, which operates at two locations in Washington, is a traditional Korean bathhouse offering services like massages, body scrubs, and hot tubs — all requiring full nudity. In 2020, a complaint was filed with the Washington State Human Rights Commission after a transgender woman — who had not undergone genital surgery — was denied entry.
The commission argued that the spa’s "women-only" policy violated the Washington Law Against Discrimination (WLAD), which prohibits discrimination in public accommodations based on gender identity and gender expression.
In response, Olympus Spa filed a lawsuit claiming the state's enforcement violated the religious and cultural beliefs of the owners — a Christian Korean-American family. They objected to the presence of individuals with male genitalia in spaces that require nudity, citing deeply held faith-based convictions.
The court, however, disagreed. Writing for the majority, Judge Margaret McKeown stated that providing a Korean body scrub or massage does not constitute expressive conduct protected by the First Amendment. Accepting the spa’s arguments, she noted, would essentially exempt gyms, salons, and massage parlors across the country from following anti-discrimination laws.
This decision comes amid a growing national debate on transgender rights. Earlier this year, former President Donald Trump reversed several protections for transgender individuals, issued executive orders to ban transgender women from women’s sports, ended federal support for gender-affirming care for minors, and sought to eliminate "radical gender ideology" from the U.S. military.
