Girl dads' contrasting views on which public bathroom they should take their daughters into stir debate

The internet is filled with tons of wholesome "girl dad" content. While it's mostly about some adorable father-daughter moment, not many speak about the realities of being a "girl dad." One less-discussed subject is about which bathroom the fathers should take their daughters into when in public - men's or women's. Earlier this May, DJ Drewski and his brother resorted to the internet's help asking his TikTok followers, "As a 'Girl Dad,' which restroom are you supposed to use with your toddler daughter in public places?" This stirred up a debate online. 

Drewski recorded the video while in Disneyland with his brother. "As a girl dad, I bring my daughter into the men's room, of course, into a stall to use the bathroom," said Drewski. "My brother brings his daughter into the female restroom," he added. While the two brothers had their reasons for having those contrasting preferences, they had no clue which was the right way or how women felt about this. 

"I just don't feel comfortable going into a women's bathroom," Drewski said. "I prefer to bring them into a female bathroom because it's It's clean. It's cleaner than the guys' bathrooms," his brother disputed. So, Drewski wanted the internet to offer a solution for his and his brother's confusion about which bathroom to take their daughters to in public places. The video garnered over 745K views and people had diverse opinions and standpoints over this matter.

Some of them commented that the dads must take their daughters to the men's room as it would be inappropriate for them to enter a women's restroom. "My dad used to bring me to the guys' bathroom and have me close my eyes until we got into the stall! Never was a problem to me or my mom!" said @janosek.alexa. "I would never think of going into women's bathroom even though I'm a 'girl dad' but mine's still a baby," added @captain__carlos.

Many women in the comments emphasized that the "girl dads" can use the women's room as long as they announce themselves while entering. "Ladies will accept you, just announce yourself. If any ladies give you trouble, they obviously don't have kids. Ignore them," remarked @evilqueen...of...3. "Announce yourself, 'Girl dad coming in with my daughter,' when you walk into a girl’s bathroom, keep her safe," said @thatizzygirl93. "We welcome the girl dads into the restroom. Just yell, 'Girl dad entering,'" chimed in @boss_lady_niki. 

Seeing these diverse opinions, Drewski was quite glad that there were many women openly welcoming 'girl dads' to use the women's room. However, in a follow-up video, he emphasized that for men like him who feel uncomfortable using the women's bathroom, "the parent’s gender determines which bathroom to go. Rule of thumb" option seemed the most appropriate. "So if you're a mom, are you bringing your son into the men's room?" Drewski asked. "As a woman, you take your son or daughter into the women's restroom. As a father, as a man, I take my son or daughter into the men's restroom," he explained.

You can follow DJ Drewski (@djdrewski) on TikTok for more content on parenting.