Florida judge says nude resort for gay men should allow women

A judge has ruled that an all-male nude resort in Florida should allow women.

Key West’s Orleans House is a hotspot for gay and bisexual men. It claims to allow women to stay on the property but says they cannot access the clothing-optional areas. Amina Chaudhry, a 38-year-old LGBTQ+ cisgender woman has sued, claiming discrimination, and now Judge Brittany Finkbeiner has recommended that the Florida Commission on Human Relations grant women the right to disrobe alongside men.

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The commission has the final say but is required to consider the judge’s opinion before making a decision. The commission already ruled against Chaudhry in February, but she appealed.

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Chaudhry argued that the men’s-only policy discriminates against women, trans, and nonbinary folks. She has no intention of staying at the resort but told The Messenger she has pursued the case to prevent other businesses from claiming they, too, can control which genders they serve.

“The implication is if they’re allowed to discriminate against any genders they don’t want coming in there, then any other place of public accommodations can do the same thing.”

Russell Cormican, New Orleans House’s attorney, says the judge’s decision violates the guests’ right to privacy.

“There’s areas of the hotel that are set aside for men to be nude. I mean, it’s like if I showed up at LA Fitness and as a man, I insisted on standing in the women’s dressing room.”

Chaudhry, on the other hand, feels “completely vindicated” by the judge’s opinion.

“Living in Key West and going through all of this, there’s this just kind of pervasive sense that I was the one in the wrong. Like I was some kind of crazy lunatic who was going against the natural order of things.”

Chaudhry has also filed a discrimination complaint against another Key West clothing-optional resort for men called Island House. She reportedly claimed she was barred from renting a room there, but the Island House attorneys tell a different story. According to Advocate, they have claimed Chaudhry was a guest at the resort’s 2022 Pride party and while there, was distributing fliers accusing the resort of discriminating against women and threatening to sue. She then returned and tried to rent a room but was told the resort was booked solid.

“I felt affronted by the fact that there was someone who was invited to the space and enjoying it, but while passing out literature to the detriment of our property and aggravating our guests,” said Island House owner Bobi Lore during an administrative hearing. “We eventually had the police escort her off the property.”