This Woman's Post About Being Kicked out of Family Dollar for Being Gay Is Going Viral
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A woman said a cashier wouldn't allow her to pay for her items at a Family Dollar in New Orleans because she's gay. Now the video she took of the confrontation is going viral. Melissa Langford claims in a Facebook post that she was in line at a Family Dollar and heard the cashier making homophobic comments.
"It started off with the cashier loudly voicing her opinion on how much she hates gay people (as I casually stand in line realizing what she's saying)."
ATTN: reached out to Langford to confirm the story, but has not yet heard back; we will update accordingly.
Langford wrote that after a few minutes of this she spoke up, asking the cashier to stop and identifying herself as gay. That's when the cashier denied her service, Langford alleges.
Facebook/Melissa Langford - facebook.com
In her videos Langford is at the register and the cashier is refusing to serve her and the customer defending her. The other customer is yelling swear words at the cashier and calling her "ignorant" over and over again.
Facebook/Melissa Langford - facebook.com
"I don’t care I’m not dealing with these two," says the cashier.
Langford claims (in the post and the video) that the cashier isn't serving her because she's gay but — seemingly aware that this interaction is being recorded — the cashier denies that her refusal is about Langford's sexual orientation.
Facebook/Melissa Langford - facebook.com
"I don’t care about you being gay," says the cashier.
Langford's Facebook post has been shared more than 1,700 times and each video has been viewed nearly 60,000 times.
Most of the commenters on her Facebook post were outraged and called for the cashier to be fired.
Facebook/Melissa Langford - facebook.com
However some people didn't think that Langford's videos proved anything about the cashier's reasons for refusing service.
Facebook/Melissa Langford - facebook.com
Facebook/Melissa Langford - facebook.com
Facebook/Melissa Langford - facebook.com
Langford told the Times-Picayune that even if her reasons aren't clear, the video clearly shows the cashier refusing service to her and another customer.
"Whether I'm right or wrong, [the cashier] shouldn't be treating a customer this way, and she can't deny people service just because she feels like it," Langford said.
A Family Dollar representative gave a statement to ATTN: about Langford's accusations.
"We take incidents like this very seriously. We have a Code of Ethics in place that ensures inclusion for customers and associates and helps to ensure good customer care. The code specifically forbids unprofessional conduct and comments on sexual orientation, among other matters. Any activity that goes against this code is simply not how we expect our stores to do business. This situation is currently under investigation."
