In December 2022, a 33-year-old woman arrived at a public pool in the Berlin-Kaulsdorf district like any other day. She took off the top part of her swimsuit — something any man could do without a problem — and the facility staff demanded that she cover up. When she refused, they expelled her.
She did not let it slide. She filed a formal complaint with the office of the Berlin Senate’s Ombudsperson, headed by Dr. Doris Liebscher. The authorities concluded that the woman had been the victim of discrimination. The result was unexpected in its scope: in March 2023, the municipal operator Berliner Bäderbetriebe officially changed its dress code rules for the entire city. Since then, women and non-binary people have been allowed to swim without covering their torsos, exactly like men. Berlin became international news overnight.
The curious thing is that this did not come out of nowhere: Germany has a cultural tradition called Freikoerperkultur — the “free body culture” — dating back to the late 19th century. Göttingen and Siegen had already adopted similar measures the previous summer. Berlin simply extended an equality that, deep down, was already part of its history. 🤔
