Employees at a Michigan smoothie shop were fired after they refused to serve a man wearing a hoodie with President Donald Trump‘s name on the front.
Two staffers at a Smoothie King were fired after Erika Lindemyer went into the store with her husband Jake, who was wearing a hoodie with ‘TRUMP’ on the front.
The employees at the Ann Arbor location denied service to the couple on Sunday after stating that Jake’s hoodie made them uncomfortable.
‘We were just wanting a smoothie and you literally looked at us, and I asked you if everything was okay,’ Lindemyer began in a video she posted on Facebook of the ordeal.
‘You said we don’t feel comfortable serving you because of my husband’s hoodie. That is discrimination,’ she told the employees in the video.
The employee, however, didn’t let up and replied: ‘Okay, well, have a great day.’
‘That is illegal,’ Lindemyer added.
Another employee chimed in and said: ‘Trump discriminates us.’
Erika Lindemyer went into the store with her husband Jake, who was wearing a hoodie baring ‘TRUMP’ and the slogan ‘Make America Great Again’
Two staffers at an Ann Arbor, Michigan, Smoothie King location were fired after refusing service to Lindemyer and her husband because of his Trump hoodie
The employees at the Ann Arbor location denied service to the couple after stating that Jake’s hoodie made them uncomfortable.
Lindemyer pointed out that ‘that has nothing to do with us wanting a smoothie.’
‘Good luck maintaining your employment,’ Jake quipped.
After the pair said that discrimination was a criminal offence, an employee responded that they have the right to refuse service.
Jake responded: ‘Not due to political views though.’
‘So literally Jake’s wearing his hoodie, they would not serve us because Jake’s wearing a Trump hoodie talking about discrimination,’ Lindemyer said on the video.
The video ended with Lindemyer declaring that she would be calling the police as they left the store – although it remains unclear if she did.
Lindemyer posted the video online where it garnered nearly five million views, as she captioned the post: ‘I’m disgusted as an AMERICAN CITIZEN! I loved Smoothie King and was refused service over my husband’s sweatshirt!!!’
‘Talk about DISCRIMINATION!!’
Lindemyer posted the video on Facebook where it garnered nearly five million views, as she captioned the post: ‘I’m disgusted as an AMERICAN CITIZEN! I loved Smoothie King and was refused service over my husband’s sweatshirt’
The couple created a GiveSendGo for their family as they are ‘harassed’ and ‘slandered in more than one way’
One of the former employees, Janiyah Mishelle, told Fox News: ‘My political opinions are very complex. I do not stand on behalf of any political party. I merely refused service because of the alleged affiliations the Trump administration has to [pedophiles].’
‘I believe in the United States & want to see our citizens standing up against binary political logic,’ she continued.
‘In my opinion, in this specific instance, I had the right to refuse service due to discomfort with a customer interaction – just as he had the right to wear the political merchandise.
‘I would like to clarify that my statements were/are NOT on behalf of Smoothie King. I would also like to thank everyone who is currently supporting me through the digital harassment, political re-framing, and job-loss.’
Her coworker asked to remain anonymous, Mishelle added.
Smoothie King responded to the incident with a statement on Facebook which said: ‘As a brand, Smoothie King is committed to ensuring our stores are a place free of discrimination of any kind, where every guest and team member is treated with care and respect.’
‘Following an investigation into an incident involving a guest who was refused service at a franchised location in Michigan yesterday, the franchise owner has taken immediate action and the two employees involved are no longer with the business.
‘Both the franchise owner and Smoothie King corporate have reached out to the guest several times to apologize and will continue to follow up.
‘The local owner is also taking further action and enforcing mandatory retraining for all employees that outlines our guest experience standards.’
The couple then created a GiveSendGo for their family as they are ‘harassed’ and ‘slandered in more than one way.’
‘Our family is now being harassed, our characters being questioned, slandered and our lives threatened.
‘At this point it is unsafe for our children to be in school due to the threats causing me to have to be with my family in order to assure they are safe.
‘I fear for my family’s safety,’ the fundraiser said.
The Daily Mail reached out to Smoothie King for comment.
