(The white portion of this woman's torso is untanned skin, not a blouse)
I don't normally report on local news issues...
why would my readers want to know what is happening far from them?
But this news story piqued my interest.
You can see a video of the story here:
Junction City Woman Thrown Out of Walmart for What She Was Wearing
KEZI | News, Weather and Sports in Eugene, Oregon
URL: http://kezi.com/
KEZI | News, Weather and Sports in Eugene, Oregon
URL: http://kezi.com/
In short... this woman went into WalMart wearing an outfit she actually purchased at this very store... and was asked to leave because of the outfit she was wearing.
She is considered "elderly"
and is decidedly odd looking with her shaved head and multiple tattoos.
The outfit in question was a bathing suit top and a pair of fairly short shorts,
a removable cast on her leg and shoes.
She is obviously overweight, but not frighteningly so.
It was a very hot day here.
A manager came to her in the store and took her aside...
saying that a customer had made a complaint
in regards to her attire.
The manager then told her that she must leave and put on a different top
if she wanted to shop there.
The woman was insulted and has asked for a formal apology.
When local news reported this story,
they were told by a WalMart rep that it is store policy
and wearing a top is a matter of health concern since they sell food items.
KEZI decided to test this policy out.
A slim younger woman in her twenties and was sent into the store
wearing cut off jeans the same length and a bikini top.
She visited all areas of the store...
including the grocery sections...
and lo and behold...
she was not stopped and cautioned about her clothing,
the policy or health concerns...
only smiles.
You would not catch me wearing this outfit in public...
and probably not even in my own yard.
(I feel like I need to apologize to the neighbors
when I wear my baggy long shorts and a wife beater
when I mow the lawn!)
Therefore when I saw this on the news...
I immediately put it into my mental
"what was she thinking?" file.
Yet on a rational level...
I think WalMart owes her that formal apology.
They were happy to sell her that outfit and take her money.
They do not enforce their "health policy"
for younger, thinner and more socially acceptable
customers.
So let's make this a "Choose and Defend Wednesday" Question...
What say you in this issue?
Was WalMart wrong in demanding that she leave?
Or did they have a right to decide who can dress in what manor inside their store?
We can all agree that this woman's judgement about her outfit was lacking. Yikes!
ReplyDeleteThat said, if WalMart is going to have a dress code/policy, then they should enforce it across the board.
I don't think this poor woman deserved the embarrassment, but if you're going to go around looking like Lex Luthor in drag, you might think it's going to happen.
Cube- LOL! Randy used almost the exact same words. He said "Holy crap! Is that Lex Luthor?"
ReplyDeleteHeh heh. Great minds think alike, eh? ;-)
ReplyDeleteCube- I think that must be it. =:D
ReplyDeleteIf a policy is REALLY a policy, it needs to be enforced for everyone. She looks like an oddbird, but she deserves an apology.
ReplyDeletelaura b.- I agree. She is a different kind of duck, but I believe they were wrong to single her out and embarrass her publicly. As for the person who filed a complaint... shame on them! All that person had to do was look away. MYOB
ReplyDeleteWell, WalMart also sells underwear, but should people be allowed to stroll about in their skivvies? I don't want to see that. Many store have signs that say "Shoes and Shirts Required." I think they didn't do wrong by asking her to put on a shirt, they did wrong by NOT asking the young woman to put on a shirt.
ReplyDeletei think the store is ok to have some sort of reasonable dress code but if the overweight granny was asked to cover up the young babe should have been too. or if they are going to let the babe hang out then the granny should be able to as well. no double standards.
ReplyDeletesecret agent woman- Excellent point!
ReplyDeletelime- I agree totally. At first I had to wonder why she would go out like that because of my personal dress issues. But the more I thought about it, they really do owe this woman an apology. And all joking aside about her looks, I am sorry that this happened to her.