A group of women attending a Pilates class in St. Louis Park, Minnesota, resorted to barricading the studio’s glass door with boxes after several men allegedly refused to stop filming them from outside. Video of the bizarre encounter was posted on TikTok, where it has racked up more than a million views within hours, with viewers saying they were disturbed by the men’s behavior.
The incident reportedly happened on Friday and was filmed by one of the women attending the class. According to her, the men had set up outside the studio with phones mounted on stands and appeared to be recording the women through the windows.
She said the Pilates instructor told them that they could not record on the private property and asked them to leave, but they allegedly refused.
The women eventually began stacking large Pilates boxes in front of the glass door to block the men’s view into the studio. However, that did not appear to dissuade them.
Footage filmed from inside shows one man standing close to the studio with a phone and microphone attached to a tall stand. At one point, he appeared to raise the equipment high enough to see above the boxes blocking the door. Two other men could be seen farther away from the building, also holding their own recording equipment.
The woman said they later called the police. But, according to her, the men left before officers arrived.
Netizens React to the Minnesota Pilates Studio Incident
In the comments under the viral TikTok post, many people criticized the men for not respecting the women’s wishes. “People are sick,” one viewer remarked. Another wondered, “What’s wrong with men like this, like really??” A third asked, “How is this different from ‘peeping tom’ type stuff?” A fourth added, “That’s just gross and disturbing be safe ladies!”
Someone else chimed in, “Why can’t these dudes be normal. how is it so hard not to be a creep.” Another comment read, “Of all the things to put energy into this is what they choose…”
Several commenters also had theories about who the men were and what they were doing. Some speculated that the men could have been so-called First Amendment auditors or people deliberately trying to provoke a reaction for online content.
“First amendment auditors. They record people in public spaces and post their reactions online,” one netizen suggested. “Rage baiters. They are all over the place now,” another wrote. A third claimed, “They do it to try to entice people to interact with them and then you call the police and they basically say it’s legal and they post it and make you look like a Karen.”
The woman who posted the video said that officers who responded told them the same men had visited other women-only Pilates studios and done something similar. However, she did not reveal whether police are investigating the incident further or whether the men could face any consequences.
