Julie Jaman was banned from her pool for telling a man to leave the change room, but she’s not backing down

Earlier this month, Julie Jaman, an 80-year-old resident of Port Townsend, Washington, was banned from her local community pool.

Her crime was to ask a man to leave the women’s change room.

Just moments after she told Clementine Adams to “get out of here,” she was told by YMCA aquatics manager, Rowen DeLuna, “You’re discriminating and you can’t use the pool anymore and I’m calling the police.”

There was no signage indicating women and girls should be prepared to encounter males in their change room, though Julie was later informed that “Pride posters” should indicate as much.

Erin Hawkins, communications manager for the pool, claimed Julie was “permanently suspended from the Mountain View Pool due to her repeatedly violating our Code of Conduct, specifically, using disrespectful words or gestures toward YMCA staff or others; using abusive, harassing and/or obscene language or gestures toward YMCA staff or others.”

None of this is true.

I spoke with Julie this week from her home in Port Townsend.

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Julie Jaman was banned from her pool for telling a man to leave the change room, but she's not backing down
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Meghan Murphy

Founder & Editor

Meghan Murphy is a freelance writer and journalist from Vancouver, BC. She has been podcasting and writing about feminism since 2010 and has published work in numerous national and international publications, including The Spectator, UnHerd, Quillette, the CBC, New Statesman, Vice, Al Jazeera, The Globe and Mail, and more. Meghan completed a Masters degree in the department of Gender, Sexuality and Women’s Studies at Simon Fraser University in 2012 and is now exiled in Mexico with her very photogenic dog.