Trigger warning: sexual assault
Fitness influencer and gym etiquette critic Joey Swoll took to his X page (formerly known as Twitter) on Thursday (May 2) to slam a man who took a mirror selfie in a changing room while a naked man was changing in the background.
“Don’t take photos in the locker room especially when people are changing,” Joey captioned the post, which featured a screenshot of the problematic photo.
“I had to add the [red octagon emoji]. WTF is wrong with you? They need to ban you,” the bodybuilder added.
In the original post, the man posing in the changing room had captioned: “Can someone cut him out?” as the poor naked bloke was clearly visible next to him.
Fitness influencer Joey Swoll criticized a man for taking a mirror selfie in a changing room
The now-viral photograph sparked outrage, as an X user commented: “‘Can someone cut him out?’ How about just don’t take your gym selfie in the locker room.
“This is illegal and distasteful.”
Another person wrote: “Hope the guy presses charges.”
Someone else added: “This dude is a clown and should be banned from the gym.”
An additional commentator penned: “Why are people such narcissists that they need to post pictures of themselves on social media for likes??”
A separate individual chimed in: “Isn’t this actually even illegal?”
In the UK, taking pictures or recording videos in locker rooms without permission is generally considered illegal under the voyeurism laws.
In the USA, the laws regarding taking pictures in gym changing rooms vary by state, and there isn’t a federal law specifically addressing this issue.
The selfie included a naked person in the background, and as a result, Joey warned against such behavior
Nevertheless, most popular gyms ban the act of taking pictures in locker rooms, as exemplified by Crunch Gym and Equinox.
Joey is notable for calling out controversial behaviors at the gym. But last month, the 41-year-old highlighted a different type of incident as he claimed he became the victim of a sexual assault by a woman.
In a now-deleted Instagram video posted on April 7, the Chicago native recalled: “Last week, I went to meet some friends out at a local bar in Costa Mesa.
“The bar was packed shoulder to shoulder.”
“Trying to get through the crowd to my friends, I walked passed [sic] a group of young women.
“Not paying attention, I felt someone grab my chest.
“Thinking WTF I looked over to see one of the young women grabbing me saying, ‘Nice muscles, but how big’s your d*ck?’
“Before I could even say a word to her she reached down and grabbed my crotch.
“I froze and just stared at her.
“I was literally speechless.
“I didn’t know what to do.
“If that was a man I would have immediately hit him and defended myself, but I would never hit a woman.”
The gym-goer’s mirror selfie continued to ignite backlash on social media
