Michigan Civil Rights Commission Says Hair Salon Violated Law With Facebook Post Referring Transgender Clients to Pet Salon

A hair salon discriminated against transgender individuals when it told them in a Facebook post to go to a pet groomer to get their hair done, a Michigan’s civil rights commission has concluded. The social media post in question went viral in 2023, stating that if a “human identifies as anything other than a man/woman please seek services at a local pet groomer.” The post added that transgender individuals are “not welcome at this salon.” Three individuals filed the lawsuit in a state court, which was dismissed. They also filed a complaint with the Michigan Civil Rights Commission, arguing that the post demonstrated an intent to discriminate and thus violated state law. Ms. Geiger countersued the complainants seeking injunctive relief.On Monday, the Michigan Civil Rights Commission issued a ruling, finding that the post violated the state’s Elliott-Larsen Civil Rights Act, which was amended in 2023 to prohibit discrimination based on gender identity or expression. An administrative law judge, Robert J. Meade, heard arguments in the case and determined that by making the post, the owner of the Studio 8 Hair Lab at Traverse City, Christine Geiger, shared an intention to deny services to transgender individuals in violation of the law. “Respondent’s posts had a harmful and detrimental impact on the LGBTQ+ community, particularly in Grand Traverse County,” the order reads.The order adds that Ms. Geiger retaliated against the claimants when she sued them. Ms. Geiger did not participate in the hearings in the case. She has said she plans to appeal the commission’s ruling and refile her countersuit.The Michigan Civil Rights Commission ordered Ms. Geiger to delete the 2023 Facebook post and to “immediately cease and desist publishing and circulating any statement that discriminates against individuals,” and stop any “retaliation” against complainants. On top of deleting the post, the commission also ordered Studio 8 to pay the attorney fees of the complainants. In a statement, the executive director of the Michigan Department of Civil Rights, John Johnson, said, “As the first ruling to be issued in Michigan directly related to discriminatory advertising under the Elliott-Larsen Civil Rights Act, this decision establishes meaningful guidance for businesses, individuals, and future cases.”“It reinforces that the protections guaranteed under Michigan law extend to the ways businesses communicate with and serve the public, helping ensure those protections are applied consistently across evolving forms of public engagement,” Mr. Johnson added.Ms. Geiger does not appear to be interested in complying with the order. The Facebook page for Studio 8, which features a cover photo with the Statue of Liberty displaying the middle finger, has not deleted the 2023 post. Ms. Geiger also shared memes about transgender issues and wrote that she is “doubling down.”“If the MIDCR wants Studio 8 Hair Lab to remove all the content that’s offensive on this page then they better be ready to have every MF that created and posted these memes all over all Social Media platforms delete their posts too. Good luck with that,” Ms. Geiger said. She noted that she is still waiting for a court date to appeal the dismissal of her lawsuit against the three complainants. An attorney representing Ms. Geiger, David Delaney, told the Detroit Free Press that the salon did not deny services to any of the complainants, and insisted their complaints were solely about the social media post. Mr. Delaney said Ms. Geiger plans to appeal the ruling, arguing that her post was protected by the First Amendment.

Michigan Civil Rights Commission Says Hair Salon Violated Law With Facebook Post Referring Transgender Clients to Pet Salon

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