Teen Girls Must Undress Next to Males at Nude Korean Christian Spa [WATCH]

The U.S. Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals ruled Thursday that Olympus Spa, a Korean Christian-owned female-only nude spa in Washington state, must permit trans-identifying males to access its facilities.

The decision, handed down in a 2–1 vote, upholds a 2023 lower court ruling from Seattle that found the spa’s policy violated Washington’s Law Against Discrimination (WLAD).

The case originated in 2020 when Haven Wilvich, a trans-identifying male with intact male genitalia, was denied entry to Olympus Spa.

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The Washington State Human Rights Commission (WSHRC) filed a complaint, citing discrimination on the basis of sex and sexual orientation.

Olympus Spa, in response, sued the commission, arguing the state’s actions infringed on its First Amendment rights, including religious freedom and freedom of association.

On Thursday, the Ninth Circuit rejected Olympus Spa’s First Amendment claims.

Judge Margaret McKeown, appointed by President Bill Clinton, wrote that the spa’s religious expression was “only incidentally burdened” by the enforcement of anti-discrimination laws.

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“We are not unmindful of the concerns and beliefs raised by the spa,” McKeown wrote.

“The spa may have other avenues to challenge the enforcement action. But whatever recourse it may have, that relief cannot come from the First Amendment.”

Judge McKeown also drew comparisons between the spa’s policy and racially discriminatory practices from the civil rights era.

She stated, “It’s not really ‘biological women are welcome.’ It means non-biological women are not welcome.”

In a dissenting opinion, Judge Kenneth Lee, appointed by President Donald Trump, issued a sharply worded rebuke.

He criticized what he described as the state’s weaponization of anti-discrimination law and described the unique nature of Korean spas, which require patrons to be nude in communal spaces and separate individuals by biological sex.

“Korean spas are not like spas at the Four Seasons or Ritz-Carlton,” Lee wrote.

“Steeped in centuries-old tradition, Korean spas require their patrons to be fully naked, as they sit in communal saunas and undergo deep-tissue scrubbing of their entire bodies in an open area filled with other unclothed patrons.”

He continued, “Now, under edict from the state, women — and even girls as young as 13 years old — must be nude alongside patrons with exposed male genitalia as they receive treatment. And female spa employees must provide full-body massages to naked preoperative transgender women with intact male sexual organs.”

Judge Lee further argued that the WLAD does not explicitly cover transgender status and accused the state of misinterpreting the law.

“Washington has perversely distorted a law that was enacted to safeguard women’s rights to strip women of protections,” he wrote.

Breaking: The Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals has ruled that Olympus Spa, a female-only nude Korean Spa in the Seattle area, must allow trans-identified males into the facility.

The female-only nude spa was found to have discriminated against a male with fully intact genitals,… https://t.co/O74RqABX4d pic.twitter.com/XSN49e1mzz

— Katie Daviscourt 📸 (@KatieDaviscourt) May 30, 2025

The decision follows a 2023 ruling from a federal judge who dismissed the spa’s complaint.

That judge held that Olympus Spa’s written policy of admitting only “biological women” violated Washington state law.

The WSHRC ordered the spa to remove the term “biological women” from its website, implement “inclusivity” training, and allow access to trans-identifying males.

Olympus Spa, with locations in Lynwood and Tacoma, Washington, stated in court filings that its policy is rooted in its Christian beliefs and long-standing cultural practices.

“The family-run business is owned by Korean Christians who hold sincere faith-based convictions against allowing persons whose genitals are external (males) to be present with persons whose genitals are internal (females) while in a state of partial or full undress if such persons are not married to one another,” the spa wrote.

The spa warned in its filings that if forced to comply, it could face financial ruin.

Customers and employees, according to the complaint, “communicated that they will not return under such circumstances, causing the business to spiral into bankruptcy.”

UPDATE ON KOREAN SPA CONTROVERSY: This is my latest collaboration with the Lynnwood Times. I spoke to Olympus Spa owner Sun Lee Monday morning. He’s thankful for the community support and plans to take this all the way to the U.S. Supreme Court if it comes down to it. He… pic.twitter.com/BTniJLuVbI

— Jonathan Choe (@choeshow) June 13, 2023

Attorney Kevin Snider, representing Olympus Spa, argued that the women who participate in this cultural and spiritual experience have constitutional rights to freedom of association and religious practice.

However, Judges McKeown and Ronald Gould, both Clinton appointees, disagreed, ruling that the state’s non-discrimination law “does not prohibit the Spa from expressing its religious beliefs.”

Judge Lee countered that the spa’s entry policy does not discriminate based on sexual orientation but rather on the presence of male genitalia.

“The spa’s entry policy focuses not on sexual orientation but on whether an individual has male genitalia,” he wrote.

The case is expected to be appealed to the United States Supreme Court.

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