Expressing Experiences of Being Gender Non-Conforming in the “Ladies” Restroom Through Autoethnography-Based Research Poetics

Authors

• Ellen D.B. Riggle, University of KentuckyFollow

Abstract

Three research poems are created as an autoethnographic response to feedback on a research article on the author’s experiences as a gender non-conforming person in women’s public restrooms. The feedback loop includes the sharing of lived experiences by others and theoretical (why?) discussions in the context of the gendered policing and politicalization of women’s restrooms. The first found poem includes words, phrases, and descriptions of images used to label spaces designated as women’s restrooms. The second prose poem recounts the author's experiences through a reframing of risk to women’s health, understanding the cultural context of male entitlement and White supremacy, and supporting the ongoing fight for justice in these spaces. The third prose poem labels and shines light on structural racism directed at Black and Brown people in women’s restrooms. Creating research poems extends the original research process by including subsequent interactions and response feedback in accessible and evocative forms and providing provocation for needed discussions.

Document Type

Article

Publication Date

2026

Notes/Citation Information

Copyright 2026: Ellen D. B. Riggle and Nova Southeastern University.

Digital Object Identifier (DOI)

https://doi.org/10.46743/2160-3715/2026.7880

Repository Citation

Riggle, Ellen D.B., "Expressing Experiences of Being Gender Non-Conforming in the “Ladies” Restroom Through Autoethnography-Based Research Poetics" (2026). Gender and Women's Studies Faculty Publications. 9.
https://uknowledge.uky.edu/gws_facpub/9