(Headline USA) Despite the Supreme Court ruling that a Christian graphic artist couldn’t be forced by state powers to design same-sex marriage websites, radical leftists in Michigan have launched an investigation of a hair salon owner who posted on social media that she felt uncomfortable servicing clients who demanded to be identified as transgender and would refer their business to another salon.
Christine Geiger’s online posts have drawn criticism from the mayor of Traverse City, Mich., and other officials, who said they were looking into whether she was violating a municipal anti-discrimination ordinance.
Similar to intolerant radical leftists who terrorized 303 Creative LLC owner Lorie Smith, who won her Supreme Court case claiming Colorado’s anti-discrimination rules violated her religious beliefs, demonstrators chanted and carried signs Wednesday outside the Traverse City, Mich., business, Studio 8 Hair Lab — Education & Beauty Supply.
In an Associated Press interview, Geiger stood by her posts and said small business owners should be free to serve whomever they wish.
“I just don’t want the woke dollar. … I’d rather not be as busy than to have to do services that I don’t agree with.”
A post last weekend on the salon’s Facebook page, which is no longer available, read, “If a human identifies as anything other than a man/woman please seek services at a local pet groomer. You are not welcome at this salon. Period. Should you request to have a particular pronoun used please note we may simply refer to you as ‘hey you.’”
In another post regarding whether her establishment was “LGBTQ+ friendly,” Geiger wrote, “LGB are more than welcome however the rest of it is not something I support.”
Geiger told the AP her statements weren’t prompted by the U.S. Supreme Court’s 303 Creative ruling, although she agreed with the decision.
Geiger, 48, said she was motivated primarily by personal experiences and objection to schools and doctor’s offices informing children about gender identification matters.
She said she had been a licensed hairstylist since 2006 and never knowingly had rejected a transgender person’s request for service. Her salon does not take walk-in clients. Her customers are mostly acquaintances and people whom they refer.
“I’ve had a big outpouring of support from my existing clients,” she said, but she’s also been flooded with angry messages, some making threats.
Jack Winn, CEO of a Texas-based hair products company whose merchandise Geiger has used and promoted in her salon, said Thursday he disapproved of her comments and had severed ties with her after receiving more than 1,600 emailed complaints.
State Rep. Betsy Coffia, a Democrat from Traverse City, said Geiger’s comments reflected “breathtaking hate and bigotry.”
City attorney Lauren Trible-Laucht said she would investigate complaints against the salon “based on the relevant legal standards,” including Supreme Court rulings and Traverse City’s 2010 ordinance barring discrimination on numerous grounds, such as sexual orientation and gender identity.
“We are disheartened to hear of any discriminatory behavior in our region,” Mayor Richard Lewis said. “The City of Traverse City has valued itself on providing a safe environment for all people.”
Adapted from reporting by the Associated Press
