December 11, 1964
The U.S. Post Office announced that it would dismantle over 5,000 “observation stations” in men’s restrooms in post offices across the country. Postmaster General John A. Gronouski called the practice “An unfortunate invasion of privacy,” but he did not think the Post Office “violated anyone’s rights.” The “observation stations” were small rooms with one-way glass, from which postal inspectors could secretly observe restroom patrons. The Post Office claimed they were created because of thefts of government property by postal employees, but many people believe they were created to observe homosexual activity. None were installed in women’s restrooms “because of the low percentage of women employees” in the Post Office and “other reasons.” It is most likely that the snooping in men’s rooms was a legacy of the homophobic panic that swept the country, and Washington in particular, in the 1950s, and is known as the “lavender scare.”
