A security guard at a grocery store in Washington, D.C. is facing charges of simple assault for pushing a transgender woman out of a restroom on Wednesday.
Transgender Ebony Belcher went to the Giant Food store and went to the restroom, according to a statement filed with the Superior Court by Metropolitan Police Office, ABC News reports.
Security guard Francine Jones approached Belcher and told him, he "could not use the bathroom." The two had a verbal fight in which Jones was accused of using homophobic slur and told Belcher that "(you) need to get out of here."
"She opened the door and came in and started calling me derogatory names," Belcher told 4 NBC Washington.
He said Jones told him, "You guys cannot keep coming in here and using our women's restroom. They did not pass the law yet."
Belcher left the restroom and went to the main area of the store but the security guard blocked him and pushed him out of the store, the statement read.
He then called 911. Jones was arrested by the police for simple assault and taken to the First District Police Station for processing.
A police report on the incident indicated that there was "hate bias/motivation" for the "crime."
Belcher told WJLA that "it's terrible.... I'm distraught. People should not be discriminated based on their gender identity."
Ahold USA, the parent company of Giant, told ABC News that the store has a commitment to creating a diverse and inclusive environment.
"Clearly, in this case, a third-party security guard appears to have acted inappropriately, and we apologise unreservedly," the company said.
Shopper Deana Chisholm of North Carolina commented on the incident: "If you was born a man go to the men's bathroom. You got a penis go to the men's bathroom. If you are born a woman go to the woman's bathroom. Period!"
The incident comes as the debate on transgender bathroom policy continues to heat up in the U.S. North Carolina has a law that provides that people should use bathroom according to their biological sex.
