Korean Christians appeal to Supreme Court after ruling forcing them to allow men into women's nude spa

A Christian, family-owned Korean spa is asking the US Supreme Court to intervene after Washington state sought to force the women-only business to admit biological males who identify as women into facilities where customers, including minors, are fully nude.

Attorneys with the Pacific Justice Institute and Alliance Defending Freedom filed a petition Monday asking the court to hear Olympus Spa v. Armstrong.

Olympus Spa, which operates locations in Lynnwood and Tacoma, offers traditional Korean jjimjilbang services, including communal steam rooms, soaking pools, and full-body scrubs performed in open areas where patrons are nude. The Christian owners have maintained a female-only policy based on both the nature of the services and their religious beliefs.

The battle began after Haven Wilvich, a biological male who identifies as a woman, filed a complaint with the Washington State Human Rights Commission in 2020 after being denied access. Wilvich still had male genitalia at the time.

The commission found the spa's policy violated Washington's anti-discrimination law, triggering a years-long constitutional battle.

The Ninth Circuit ultimately sided with the state in a 2-1 decision in 2025. In March, the court denied requests for panel and en banc rehearing, clearing the way for the spa's appeal to the Supreme Court.

The case has also produced controversy from the bench. During oral arguments, Ninth Circuit Judge Margaret McKeown compared arguments defending the spa's women-only policy to historical "whites-only" segregation laws.

"It is an abuse and perversion of the public accommodation laws to give biological males access to the intimate spaces of unconsenting females in a state of full or partial undress," PJI Chief Counsel Kevin Snider said Monday.

Attorneys for Olympus Spa argue Washington's enforcement violates the First Amendment and forces the Korean immigrant family to choose between its livelihood and deeply held religious beliefs.

The Supreme Court must now decide whether or not to take the case.