Would you like some discrimination with that margarita? A woman charges that Caliente Cab Compay, the Greenwich Village Mexican themed restaurant removed her from the premises on June 24, Gay Pride Day, on the basis of her masculine appearance.
Khadijah Farmer, a 27-year-old lesbian and Manhattan resident who works as a counselor for people with disabilities, claims that she was using the women’s restroom when a bouncer banged on her stall door because he had been told there was a man inside. She says she offered to show him identification to prove her biological female sex, but he dismissed the suggestion, and then demanded that she, her girlfriend and friend pay the tab and leave the establishment promptly.
Although Farmer identifies fully as a woman and is not transgender, the Transgender Legal Defense and Education Fund is representing her in a suit against the restaurant. The group is demanding that the business enforce a non-discrimination policy and train employees to comply with laws protecting LGBT individuals, and compensate its client for the violation of her civil rights.
The New York City Human Rights Law prohibits discrimination in public accommodations on the basis of sexual orientation and gender, including appearance, behavior and expression.
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