A California woman alleges that she was discriminated against by a customer for being transgender. According to her, a woman at a store confronted her about allegedly stealing underwear even though she didn’t. She decided to involve a supervisor and confront this woman for her behavior.
Shay (@ohhelloshay) is a trans woman who recently bought new underwear at a store. She said that, while browsing, a female customer accused her of “stealing panties” even though she didn’t steal anything. The customer allegedly asked Shay, “What’s wrong? Are you too poor to buy underwear?” Shay wasn’t about to stand for those accusations, so she spoke with a supervisor, who helped her confront the woman. According to Shay, the woman refused to acknowledge her behavior with the supervisor present.
Shay recorded herself confronting the woman about her behavior toward her, which she found to be discriminatory. Shay tells the woman, “You told me security was waiting for me. I showed them my bag. There’s nothing in there.” When Shay points out what the woman said, she just stares in disbelief. But Shay isn’t about to let it go and adds, “Next time, don’t accuse people of things that they didn’t do.”
The woman tries to fight back with Shay, but Shay interrupts, informing her that she “filed a complaint against her.” The woman responds sarcastically with, “Oh good!” Shay tells her that she wants to make sure that “other customers don’t get harassed” by this customer.
Shay explains to her audience regarding the incident: “I’m not ashamed of being hurt by what happened. But, I’m also not going to quietly accept being treated that way. I deserved to be treated with dignity. And I still do.”
Commenters immediately shared their reactions to Shay’s video, with many supporting Shay for confronting discrimination. One commenter simply stated, “Confront them Karens everytime.” Another commenter shared, “I don’t understand why people can’t mind their own business. Like literally everybody is trying to shop and do their thing and then you have women like that making it harder on others during their shopping experience. I’m sorry she put you through that.”
Others agreed with Shay that this customer seemed to single her out. One commenter urged, “I felt like it was a personal attack. Glad you confronted her. Report it to corporate.” Commenters continue to share their opinions on the alleged discrimination Shay faced and share their personal stories of the same thing happening to them. Many individuals relate to her story and offer solutions for how things can change.
