LINCOLN PARK, Mich. — A chain of fitness centers has provided more privacy for women while they work out after some Muslim members complained that men could watch them, violating Islam's standards of modesty.
Some Muslim members of the gym said they joined Fitness USA because it had single-sex workout rooms.
But the gym recently opened a new area open to both sexes, and from there, men were able to see into the women's section, said Dawud Walid, executive director of the Michigan chapter of the Council on American-Islamic Relations.
Fitness USA said Wednesday that it agreed to the changes at its Lincoln Park gym after meeting with the council and a concerned Muslim member of the gym.
Last week, Fitness USA installed some panels and frosted glass that completely block off the women's area from the coed room, said Jodi Berry, administrative director for the chain, based in Oakland County's West Bloomfield Township. |