A gay couple is claiming they were made to leave a mall in Sacramento, California, after a security guard saw them holding hands and kissing.
Over the weekend, Daniel Chesmore, 21, and boyfriend Jose Guzman, 24, were strolling through the Westfield Galleria in Roseville when a guard allegedly told them, “If you continue to kiss, you will be asked to leave the mall. Period.”
The men recording the conversation, in which the unnamed mall guard told them, “I counted you guys kissing 25 times. I told you before, we contact any couple…about this.”
Chesmore told Fox 40, “I kissed him on the cheek. That’s how my boyfriend and I show affection.”
How about we take this to the next level?
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Westfield’s manager told the news station that anyone who violates the Galleria’s code of conduct would be asked to leave, but there’s nothing in the code about public displays of affection.
We’re not fans of PDA, but we’re more concerned with why a security guard is following a couple and counting how many times they kiss, rather than—oh, we don’t know—watching for shoplifters and pickpockets?
Dakotahgeo
Security guards are neither security or guards and have neither the intelligence nor the guts to enter law enforcement services (We have enough security guards posing as law enforcement as it is!). As for the Mall Manager’s remarks, he’s not even intelligent enough to know his own company’s policies, hence he knows that there are no laws prohibiting holding hands or kissing in the Mall. I really pity the arrogance, ignorance, and lack of education of these robotic flowerpots called Management!
Derek Williams
Clear discrimination, pure and simple.
Spike
Why complain, just don’t spend $$ at the Mall, better yet, get the hell out of Sacramento.
hf2hvit
In California, you have grounds to sue under The Unruh Act. Any California attorney should know.
Scott Johansen
This story, more so than any other LGBT related story that comes to mind recently, bothers me that such blatant forms of anti gay bias are perfectly adopted and acceptable in our country in 2013, and especially right outside San Francisco. This is not right. I went on the facebook page of this mall to complain and it seems a peaceful protest is being staged for Saturday. The response by management is complete lies and basically owning up to having a bias against gay couples.
And this couple seems sincerely sweet and well meaning.
USC Trojans Fan
This happens way too often with gay couples, and at a certain point, we as acommunity need to grab our straight allies and together, collectively put our foots down and say this is not right and we won’t stand for it anymore. Gay couples are now targeted on a weekly basis in various stories, for simply holding hands. The bigots want to shame and essentially terrorize us back in the closet. It’s time they hear a loud, collective roar from us that being in a gay relationship, much like straight relationship, means you will hold your partners hand or kiss them on the cheek.
And the fact that this news segment caught the mall lying, considering it documented straight couples doing the same thing and worse than anything this gay coupled kicked out did. This is not right folks.
Reality101
This footage on the news so clearly caught this mall and it’s managers lying. It showcases hetero coupls freely getting away with it, yet this unsuspecting gay couple harming no one gets a tongue lashing and is escorted out for kissing each other once on the cheek and holding hands. Enough with societal homophobia. I wish a gay organization like Equality California would remind this mall that they are both ethically and legally in the wrong. Until we do, this mall will continue to target and belittle the next gay couple.
I hope more people hear about this. As tax paying citizens, we should be free to walk a mall holding the hand of the one we love, and appropriately giving them a peck on the cheek without fear of vast consequences.
Dakotahgeo
@USC Trojans Fan: foots??? FOOTS??? Good God, man, try not to make yourself look so stupid! Singular: foot! Plural: FEET!!! (foots???) Geeez Louise!!!
Thedrdonna
Their FB page is getting pretty well hammered, but the Yelp page hasn’t had much action yet, in case people want to convey their displeasure.
TheBippi
I work in the *SAME* building as their US Corporate Headquarters…going to get an answer today!!!
Raquel Santiago
I would have told them to call the police and have me and my boyfriend(s) physically escorted out and seen what happens. Naturally they wouldn’t have been able to do a damn thin.
Raquel Santiago
@TheBippi: give us the 411 plase as soon as you get an answer. [email protected] i have had to physically restrain myself from sending management an above the board email on company letterhead.
TheBippi
@Raquel Santiago: Will do! I’m speaking to their corporate contact, Jeff Adams shortly!
Bryan
jackpapa
This mall not only counts on local shoppers, but also tourist dollars. As a tourist I pledge to NEVER enter their doors until a full and sincere apology is extended to the gay couple who were removed from the mall for holding hands and kissing on the cheek. The discrimination (straight couples can publicly disply affection but gays cannot) started by mall security and backed up by mall management makes this the LAST place I would spend my tourist dollars. I urge all fair minded people to starve these bigots of their shopping dollars
PTBoat
If I were they, I’d get some footage of heterosexuals having dry sex, as constantly happens, in that mall and sue the living heck out of them. California has anti-discrimination laws.
2eo
@Dakotahgeo:
Singular: Foot [not Foot!]
Plural: Feet [not FEET!!!]
Good fake prophet who doesn’t and never existed, man, try not to make yourself look so stupid.
MuscleModelBlog.com
They were not violating any code of conduct. They were being discriminated against. Pure and simple.
@Jackpapa: you are right. The only way to make them change their minds is a boycott; however, you also have to take into consideration that the retailers / employees inside the mall may not be homophobic…and any boycott would hurt them, too.
There are no easy answers.
northwest
Sacramento/Roseville are hellholes.
Will L
A kiss on the cheek might be a show of affection but 25 times? I smell a couple of attention whores who probably should have been asked to leave. I don’t necessarily want to see anyone kissing or making out in public. A single kiss on the cheek would have gotten a dirty look from me – if it stops there. I’d like to see this on film before I accuse the mall of discrimination.
jar
@USC Trojans Fan: Agreed. Gay and lesbian couples suffer discriminatory treatment in most public accommodations, from being shunted to the backs of restaurants, denied patronage in stores, catering halls, etc., as well discrimination in hotels. One thing we have generally been good at is having our voices heard through boycotts, starting with the now forgotten bitch Anita Bryant and those Florida oranges. I am comfortable they will get justice here.
Fidelio
@Will L: The kids claim no way they kissed 25 times considering the length of time they were there. Plus, they were kisses on cheek. Considering how the mall is handling the fallout, I tend to believe the kids.
jar
@Will L: Horrified by a peck on the cheek? How wonderfully Victorian of you. You will find the 21st century quite radical, when you choose to join us.
Dakotahgeo
@2eo: That’s what I said. Your point is? Sober up!
2eo
@Dakotahgeo: Relax, I’m just poking some fun.
@jar: That’s how it starts, a peck on the cheek, then they’ll want to sit near the front of the bus, THEN they may even gather the temerity to wish to be considered human.
USC Trojans Fan
Wow. Witnesses are now coming forward and saying the gay couple was not at all making out “25 times” as the mall management suggested. People are saying the couple was acting appropriately and there’s even stories that there were straight couples around the gay couple who truly were making out and not being asked to leave. This is one case where the ignorant party has truly been caught red handed. That this happened outside California’s state capitol in 2013 is the reason why many are passionate, and understandably so.
The local Fox News crew at the city went to the mall and got footage of straight people doing exactly what the mall claims they kicked this gay couple out for. Yet, the mall security is seen walking past the straight couples and not giving them any warnings.
I wonder why it’s so difficult for some companies to just own up that some of their employees truly messed up, they will face consequences, and the company is sincerely sorry to it’s LGBT patrons. That takes little effort but goes a long way. Westfield Galleria sits in some serious poo right now.
Chad Hunt
I hold hands with my partner frequently in public and have been known to kiss him on the check and/or lips. This violates no standards of contact anywhere. Anytime anyone has made a comment to us we simply follow them around and heckle them til they are the ones to leave. If i would have been these two guys I would have demanded to see mall managers at the very moment. Sue is my answer to this.
lmichaelj
I created a petition at Change.org, asking the mall management to apologize to the couple. You can sign the petition by clicking on this link:
https://www.change.org/petitions/westfield-galleria-in-roseville-california- issue-a-public-apology-to-the-gay-couple
Thank you!
lmichaelj
@Dakotahgeo: I created a petition at Change.org, asking the mall management to apologize to the couple. You can sign the petition by clicking on this link:
https://www.change.org/petitions/westfield-galleria-in-roseville-california- issue-a-public-apology-to-the-gay-couple
Thank you!
Derek Williams
@lmichaelj: Tried both your links and both are broken:
“Well this is embarrassing…
“We couldn’t find the page you were looking for.
“Go back to our homepage.”
lmichaelj
@Derek Williams:
So sorry Derek. This is the link directly from Change.org. Perhaps you did not paste the entire link:
https://www.change.org/petitions/westfield-galleria-in-roseville-california-issue-a-public-apology-to-the-gay-couple
Or you can go directly to Change.org and search for the title of the petition:
“Westfield Galleria in Roseville, California: Issue a public apology to the gay couple.”
Derek Williams
@lmichaelj: Thanks! That worked.
lmichaelj
@Derek Williams:
Pleasure. ;>) Spread the word, please.
Thanks so much for signing my Change.org petition. The Roseville Westfield Mall continues to stonewall on their answers, now saying that the two young men were engaging in explicit sexual behavior. As the two young men had several witnesses who have come forward and documented their cheek kissing and hand holding, it just makes RWM look more and more arrogant and stupid. One interesting legal angle of all of this is that it looks like the RWM has violated the California Unruh Civil Rights Act.
The Unruh Civil Rights Act is a piece of California legislation that specifically outlawsdiscrimination based on sex, race, color, religion, ancestry, national origin, disability, medical condition, marital status, or sexual orientation.[1][2][3] This law applies to all businesses such as hotels and motels, restaurants, theaters, hospitals, barber and beauty shops, housing accommodations, and retail establishments.[4] The law was enacted in 1959 and was named for its author, Jesse M. Unruh. The Unruh Civil Rights Act is codified as California Civil Code section 51.
I hope the ACLU or HRC steps up and says to the young men we will pursue this case for you. I know both of those organizations are closely watching this event, as well as the Sacramento LGBT center.
Again, thanks for supporting my cyber activism.