Woman denied entry to club after refusing to show underwear to security

A woman in the Lithuanian coastal city of Palanga was refused entry to a nightclub after security staff demanded she lift her dress to prove she was wearing underwear, *LRT.lt* reports.

Laura, whose name has been changed for privacy, said she felt humiliated when bouncers first criticised her outfit—deeming her fitted trousers “inappropriate”—then insisted she reveal her underwear before allowing her inside. After she refused, she was turned away.

**”I was treated like a product for sale,”** Laura told *LRT.lt*. **”A male security guard asked me to lift my dress and show my underwear. Should I really have had to flash my slip in public just to prove I was wearing one?”**

The incident has reignited debate over gender-based dress code enforcement in nightlife venues. Rugilė Butkevičiūtė, co-founder of the gender equality organisation *Ribologija*, called the demand **”completely inappropriate and discriminatory”**, noting that women frequently face stricter scrutiny over appearance than men.

**”Would they ask a man in line to remove his shirt and show his underwear?”** Butkevičiūtė said. **”The issue is the double standard—women are judged on clothing details, not their character or achievements.”**

She added that such incidents extend beyond clubs, citing schools where girls are barred from wearing trousers in winter and workplaces where women face pressure to wear high heels or maintain polished appearances. **”The expectation that a woman must always be ‘put together’—manicured, styled—is exhausting and outdated,”** she said.

Lithuania’s Equal Opportunities Ombudsperson’s Office has previously warned that dress code policies targeting only women may constitute gender-based discrimination.