ew.

I would have let my kid crap all over their floor and then stood outside and laughed as the employees who refused access to the bathroom had to clean it up.

that picture is both right and so very wrong on so many levels for this story

What a shitty situation...

There's nothing worse than being out and about and feeling a sudden rumbling down in the old Rocky Mountain Chocolate Factory....

I've been fortunate to never have been refused when my child has done the pee-pee dance. However, if this was the attitude of a food-selling establishment to this situation, I will let him pee on their floor, in front of customers.

New rule: If someone looks like they need to take a shit, just let them use your bathroom. You won't like the consequences.

The only thing i have to say about this though is that if a store does not have a customer bathroom, don't complain if they let you use an employee only bathroom. I worked at a place in high school and we had signs that said bathroom is for employees only. Of course we were nice and let people use the bathroom if they requested but they had to walk through the stockroom and to a bathroom that was not always 'clean'. Some people complained about cleanliness and/or location of it etc. our response was always that this is why it was regarded as employees only

Here is the store info for those that would like to email the company and express their disgust.

[rmcf.com]

As a mom, I know that when one of my kids needs a bathroom, there is little time to debate the issue. Diarrhea is a whole other ballgame.

That place sucks, and the manager sucks twice as much for being a dick about it.

Well, chocolate milk USED to be one of my favorite beverages.

So, why is there no public restroom at this store?

Handing out re-prints of this article in front of the store would be a great viral marketing start. Unless its on private property - but who cares - hand them out til you're asked to leave.

That picture with the cup only makes you want to go.

If this story was put to video, I would only ask that "Chocolate Rain" would be used as the soundtrack.

Well, campaign is working so far. I'd never heard of Rocky Mountain Chocolate Factory before, and now I will forever associate it with diarrhea.

@Underpants Gnome: Little girl and a cup! Sorry, that was terrible.

Seriously, I love that the mother has started this viral campaign. Normally I think about these things before deciding to get involved, but given the manager's snark -- I'm in! This WILL make your daughter proud!

That is pretty messed up. The worst part is that any one of those employees could have lost their job by letting her daughter use the bathroom.

Pretty lame that North America doesn't have a unified 'people have the right to use a bathroom in an emergency' law yet.

I love the image accompanying the story. I'll never thing of chocolate the same way.

I have eaten at the Chocolate Factory in the past, and I'll assure you that I won't go there again UNTIL this "manager/owner" does a public about-face.

I've been in the situation of needing to go and being in a store that didn't have a public bathroom. It sucks, but you find someplace else to go. The mom could have ran across the street to the movie theater in the first place and maybe they would have made it in time.

We don't often see issues of basic human decency on this fine blog. Usually it's money, or jerkiness, or stupidity.

But rarely is it this level of just plain nastiness.

"Human decency" is right.

This is why I don't give my toddler a bunch of PBRs before shopping.

@yukonrye: Thanks! Just fired off a very articulate message regarding my overall disgust; even though they'll likely delete it, I'm happy just knowing that I caused a little extra inconvenience.

By the way... I thought Rocky Mountain Chocolate Factory was a candy store. We have one in a mall here and that's all it is. There isn't even room for a public bathroom because the place is so small.

The employees didn't have to be cruel about it, but sadly, "insurance reasons" for keeping customers out of employees-only areas is very real. An employee could be fired for letting a customer back in those areas. The fear is that if a customer gets hurt back there, he or she could sue the store, which took the cheaper route by insuring that specific area solely for employees, and the store would be out of luck. If it weren't for sue-happy people, stores wouldn't be afraid to let customers use their bathrooms in an emergency. It sucks, but perhaps complaints to a district manager can get a change in policy.

@samurailynn: If I was place that served food or drink, I would have assumed they would let a child use the bathroom. But way to blame the victim, there's always one.

Of course, it wouldn't be fair to put the little girl through this, but wouldn't it be awesome if the mother had let her go while standing up in front of the counter, letting some of the problem go on the floor, then order something, and let the daughter scoot right into a booth?

It's wrong and not justified but it's tempting to think of things like this.

It hasn't happened to me often, but when I've asked to use an employee restroom I haven't been refused yet. I'd be so ticked if I was the mother in this situation, especially my child was involved.

Also boo-hiss to the smartass response by the store manager.

@StoutHearted: I worked at a comic book store that had an employees only bathroom. While we wouldnt let adults use, we never refused a child.

@luz:

Pabst Blue Ribbons? I'm assuming that's not what you're going for, but that's the only PBR I know :)

@statnut: I'm not saying places shouldn't have bathrooms open to the public, I'm just saying that if they say no, standing around arguing probably isn't going to help anything. Do you think the minimum wage drones behind the counter care?

People are freaking high, that's all I have to say. It's a small candy store with no public bathroom and this idiot mother would rather stand there arguing with them rather than go to find the nearest public bathroom for her kid. Then she wants to make a federal case over it.

It would have been nice if they offered to let the girl use the bathroom if there even was one in the store, but by no means should they have to do so.

I have experienced issues of emergency restroom use and if they denied me I would have gone to the back of the store and let it go on the doorknob to the employee entrance.

It probably was a situation of the bathroom being employee only and the employees not wanting to give in. I faced a similar situation like this at a store once where the kid really really had to go, I looked at my manager (because our bathroom was not public) and she said "no way she has to go somewhere else".

Some stores keep stock, dangerous chemicals and other supplies in their bathrooms, it CAN be an insurance danger to let a customer in there.

This was an unfortunate situation, but the employees were probably directed to NEVER let anyone use the employee bathroom, so I won't fault them for doing what they felt they needed to to protect their jobs.

And for those who say the manager would have understood if they had let the kid in, don't be so sure. Managers aren't always sensible people.

@samurailynn: Either you don't have kids or never had a kid with diarrhea. When they holler, "diarrhea, diarrhea" you do NOT have time to "run across the street". You have approximately 60 seconds until detonate.

@davebg5: Try that on my property and I'll be laughing as I call the cops and press charges against you for vandalism of private property.

Seriously, individuals should *not* have the right to go onto private property and *demand* to use the restroom, no matter the situation. If I walked up to your front door and threw a fit to use your restroom, are you just going to let me in to use it?

I think the employees knew that they would have to clean up the ensuing crapstorm in the bathroom, and I don't blame them a bit for refusing the kid access. Contacting human feces of unknown origin is a good way to get yourself hepatitis.

@jamesdenver: Some states protect the right to exercise first amendment rights on private property, though this varies by state. In New Jersey for instance, the state supreme court rule that since malls have replaced the public square, its reasonable to exercise free speech rights. But its a state issue, so it varies.

Hand out flyers and stand out front with a picket sign.

@TheUncleBob: Amen Uncle Bob, perfect example!

@StoutHearted: Good point. Looks like it's in a mall, if Google Maps serves me correctly. I wonder if there was a closer store with a public restroom? I guess not, if the mother's 2nd effort was in a movie theater.

You can tell who has kids in this thread.

@TheUncleBob:

I'm sure the cops are going to arrest a 5 year old with explosive diarrhea.

This deserves the "Heartless" tag, too.

Here in Florida it is a state law that all stores have public restrooms.

How about an active protest whereby you get people willing to get diarrhea all visit the store, only shortly before consuming 3-4 doses of Milk of Magnesia. I'm pretty sure the smell will kill off business for a good while and force them to reconsider having a no bathroom policy, and even might make them think a public restroom would be a good idea.

I would think that any business that has customers in their store should be required by law to have a restroom available at all times. Let them have an employees only if they want, but it should be a requirement.

@Franklin Comes Alive!: Could you please tell me where my post says anything about arresting anyone, let alone a 5-year-old?

Calling the cops and filing a report is the first step toward pressing vandalism charges.

From looking at the webpage linked above, it sounds like this is just a small candy shop, not a restaurant. If it is anything like the Rocky Mountain candy shop I've been to before, you would have to go behind the counter where the employees are to get to any backroom or restroom, and it's very confined space back there. I can imagine other customers being a little grossed out by a child behind the counter yelling diarrhea.

@DarrenO: Um, when the situation is that urgent, there's usually little to no time to try somewhere else. Doesn't sound to me like the parent spent forever arguing either, they just pleaded because they knew there probably wouldn't be time to make it elsewhere.

@Jbball: I would think that private businesses should be allowed to determine what's best for their business, unless the government (and therefore, tax dollars) are going to be spent to install and maintain the public restrooms.