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An anonymous reader shared, 'During large-scale protests (like those that took place in Egypt) in crowded public spaces, where do people go to the bathroom? These events are often spontaneous, so there's no guarantee that portable toilets will be placed in the area. It's just one more uncomfortable aspect of protesting that crossed my mind.'
Sarah A. Topol, a journalist who was in Egypt during the anti-Mubarak protests two years ago, explains that finding bathrooms for thousands of people is not as challenging as one might think. Protests like these can surprisingly offer a moment of 'normalcy' amid the chaos.
[In Tahrir Square] men have a few options: the metro station (which is actually a subterranean sidewalk leading to the underground, now closed for over a week), and the bathrooms of two mosques. For women, there’s just one choice: the women's section of the square’s main mosque. This is also where many women, particularly those with children, sleep. Inside the mosque, I was gently patted down and given an apologetic smile for the inconvenience. Women chat in the dim light, and the cool green tiles in the bathroom are a relief compared to the open sewer just 10 feet away. The two available stalls are clean, though there aren't many.'
Medea Benjamin, co-founder of CODEPINK, was also in Cairo during the Arab Spring and asked protesters the very same question.
“Where do you go when you need to use the bathroom?” I asked one of the women, as there wasn't a single portable toilet or bathroom in sight for the crowd of people. She replied, “We go to the street, knock on doors, and ask to use their bathrooms. Complete strangers are letting us into their homes.”
Protesters at Occupy Wall Street also had to depend on the generosity of strangers, hoping that local businesses would let them use their facilities, according to Robert Johnson from Business Insider. The response was mixed.
Burger King stood firm, requiring protesters to make a purchase to use the restroom and enforcing a 20-minute time limit on seating. McDonald's, on the other hand, was much more lenient, allowing anyone off the street to come in and take care of their business. I spoke to the janitor after his shift, asking how the protesters were behaving. He gave me a quick look up and down, then said, 'They're cool,' before rushing off.
