Anti-trans* woman sues Planet Fitness for cancelling her membership.

[backscatter712]

A few weeks ago, this bigoted fundie came to Planet Fitness, and saw a trans-woman using the locker room. She went to the management, said there was a "man" in the locker room. The management explained that this person identified as a woman, was using the bathroom of the gender she identified as, and that no rules were being violated.

The fundie woman started screaming and yelling and making a scene, and Planet Fitness's management told bigot lady that Planet Fitness was a no-judgment zone, canceled her membership, and told her to get the fuck out.

Good on Planet Fitness. LGBT community 1, bigots 0.

Of course, this lady is a member of a hardcore Christian fundamentalist group. She's too judgmental to tolerate no-judgment zones, now she's lawyered up, and is suing Planet Fitness for "violating her civil rights"

http://www.dailykos.com/story/2015/03/24/1372952/-Anti-trans-woman-uses-the-Mich-civil-rights-act-to-sue-Planet-Fitness-for-cancelling-her-membership.

Earlier this month I wrote about a woman in Midland who had her Planet Fitness membership cancelled because she spent her days in their gym warning anyone who would listen that Planet Fitness had a "No Judgment Zone" policy that permitted a transgender woman to enter the women's locker room. Keep in mind that their locker rooms have private changing stalls and their toilet stalls have doors on them. But the presence of a "man" in the locker room was simply too much for Yvette Cormier who then returned every day the following week to "warn" women about Planet Fitness's horrible policy of tolerance, inclusion, and acceptance.

Planet Fitness told her to knock it off, she didn't, so they revoked her membership. Done and done.

Now a legal group with ties to an extremist right wing Christian group is suing Planet Fitness on behalf of Cormier for their policy and they are invoking - I'm not kidding here - the Elliott-Larsen Civil Rights Act. According to the suit filed by the Kallman Legal Group, Planet Fitness is guilty of invasion of privacy, two counts of sexual harassment, retaliation, intentional infliction of emotional distress, and breach of contract. The sexual harassment and retaliation charges are, according to them, direct violations of the Elliott-Larsen Civil Rights Act because Cormier is a woman.

[Erich Bloodaxe BSN]

1. I think we could all see this one coming.

I just hope Planet Fitness has their contracts well-written enough to withstand the suit.

[backscatter712]

4. They're a big company.

I'd think they'd have had a lawyer or two review them.

Personally, I think it's going to be very hard for crazy fundie lady to win her case - the gym has clear rules, openly stated, when she talked to the management, the rules and the situation was explained to her, and she chose to throw a fit in a public place. She was told she was violating the rules, and given consequences for breaking the rules.

[NuclearDem]

2. "two counts of sexual harassment"

You've got to be fucking kidding me.

[backscatter712]

8. One person is entitled to file a sexual harassment lawsuit...

And that's the poor trans-woman who was just trying to go to the gym and work out, when this crazy fundie lady started screaming about her genitalia, publicly humiliating her. It was so bad that Planet Fitness's management stepped in and threw the crazy lady out to make the harassment stop.

[LynneSin]

15. Only sexual harrassment I see is the fundie screaming about the trans' private parts

I mean to me THAT is sexual harassments.

I would counter sue. Put the crazy fundie on a sexual predator list or something.

But I do know this - Planet Fitness writes it in the contract about the 'No Judgement Zone'. What the fundie woman did was in clear violation of that contract.

[SheilaT]

3. Without knowing very much about whatever law or laws might be involved,

isn't something like a fitness club a private enterprise that can establish their own rules? And those rules can include what might otherwise be illegal discrimination? I'm thinking of the fact that a while back I belonged to a woman only fitness club. I don't know if there are any men only gyms, and I'm not sure if there are still any men only private social clubs, and perhaps my gender example isn't a very good one.

I do know that at least until relatively recently (and maybe still ongoing) there were golf courses that did not admit Jews and it was perfectly legal, if dumb and despicable.

[NuclearDem]

5. I don't know why that's relevant.

She acted like an ass, and Planet Fitness didn't want someone being an ass on their property.

[backscatter712]

9. Planet Fitness made it very clear.

They advertise prominently that their gyms are a "No Judgement Zone."

So when this judgmental fundie comes in and starts screaming about another member's genitalia, the management stepped in and told her to take her judgmental attitude somewhere else. When she continued with her judgmental temper tantrum, she got thrown out.

Open and shut case, if you ask me.

[gvstn]

6. I think most states have a refusal of service law.

Where a business can refuse just about anyone that they find disruptive as long as they are not part of a protected class.

So you can kick a drunk guy out of the supermarket or tell some guy that wants to smoke while refueling his tank at the gas station to not come back he isn't welcome at your establishment. I think the Planet Fitness situation falls under this idea. he woman was disruptive they asked her to stop being disruptive and when she refused they said we don't want your business any more.

https://www.legalzoom.com/articles/the-right-to-refuse-service-can-a-business-refuse-service-to-someone-because-of-appearance

[hunter]

7. If there was such a thing as a "reasonable" fundamentalist Christian...

... and she didn't approve of Planet Fitness or it's policies, she would have left the place quietly and never returned.

And whosoever shall not receive you, nor hear your words, when ye depart out of that house or city, shake off the dust of your feet. -- Matthew 10:14

Instead she's out there on the street corner like a hooker for God, flashing her goods, and loudly trumpeting her "Christian" values to all who pass by.

[backscatter712]

12. This particular woman is a member of a Dominionist group...

She's working with lawyers from Salt and Light Global Ministries, which seeks to "impose God’s law 'in every social sphere in every community.'"

Reasonable? Hahahaha!

[Rex]

21. Wow, they sound like the Taliban or ISIS.

How compeletly fucked up, but fundies of all stripes share that common goal.

[Gothmog]

10. This lawsuit is not serious

I doubt that this lady will have much luck with her bigotry

[backscatter712]

11. That's my bet.

The judge will gavel this thing out of court shortly before using his gavel on the heads of this lady and her lawyers.

[mythology]

13. I would day the same thing about the Hobby Lobby case

Unfortunately we have a lot of fundamentalist nut job judges who think it's okay to subject the rest of us to their bigoted world view.

In a just world this would be laughed out of court and she would be billed for Planet Fitness' court and attorneys' fees.

[msanthrope]

14. Can I call the lawsuit a fad?

To the jury....this is in reference to certain persons on this board referring, horribly, to transwomen as a "fad."

[Humanist_Activist]

18. And that person is still allowed to post here, its a travesty. n/t

[Rex]

22. Seriously?

I am curious as to who did that here. Unacceptable

[Lancero]

23. I remember one member here bringing up...

RW talking points comparing transwomen to rapists, but I don't recall seeing posts like this in the previous topic about this case.

[Humanist_Activist]

26. Yes, seriously, oh, and please look at the context with the post they responded to,

which was mine.

http://www.democraticunderground.com/?com=view_post&forum=1002&pid=6331230

[backscatter712]

24. I'll say it again. I'll wear the hide I got in that thread with pride.

I told that anti-trans bigot to fuck off, and no, I'm not sorry for doing so.

[Humanist_Activist]

27. Same here, I had a couple of hides, if I remember right. n/t

[LostOne4Ever]

30. +infinity (nt)

[tanyev]

16. I'd be willing to be the Kallman Legal Group contacted her, and not the other way around.

[davidn3600]

17. Her lawyers are extreme right-wingers

Cormier’s representation by Kallman Legal Group is likely not a coincidence. David and Stephen Kallman, a father and son team, already have a reputation for opposing LGBT equality in Michigan. In October of 2013, they submitted a legal memo challenging proposed LGBT nondiscrimination protections in Delta Township, claiming that the ordinance would violate others’ religious freedom. The memo compared homosexuality to extramarital sex, polygamy, pedophilia, serial killer rapists, necrophilia, bestiality, and incest and suggested that because gender identity is “internal to the person,” someone accused of discrimination would be required to be a “mind-reader” not to discriminate. Their suit against Planet Fitness for respecting how individuals self-identify their gender seems to disprove this last concern.

In addition to his legal practice, David Kallman serves on the board of the Colorado-based Salt and Light Global ministries, which believes the Bible is infallible and seeks to impose God’s law “in every social sphere in every community.” Both Kallmans also serve as legal counsel for the Great Lakes Justice Center, which has published issue briefs similarly rejecting LGBT protections as a violation of religious liberty and describing such laws as an attempt to promote “civil acceptance of homosexual conduct through the force of law.”

In 2000 and 2001, David Kallman represented the American Family Association of Michigan when it fought the creation of a gay-straight alliance at Jackson High School in Jackson, Michigan. At the time, he compared the proposed club to a “group that encourages smoking pot,” describing homosexuality as dangerous because of higher rates of HIV infection. State Rep. Gary Glenn (R), who continues to serve as president of the American Family Association of Michigan, has also spoken out against the Planet Fitness policy and some transgender activists worry he may introduce legislation criminalizing transgender bathroom usage.

http://thinkprogress.org/lgbt/2015/03/24/3638044/planet-fitness-transgender-lawsuit/

[Humanist_Activist]

19. I'm sure there are many posters here that are gleeful she is suing and are hoping she wins...

I won't name names, but they know who they are.

[tammywammy]

28. I'm surprised they're staying away from this thread.

they were so vocal in the previous thread.

On a side note, she's suing for $25k in damages. WTF? And all this from the supposed "ally" she claimed to be. A bigot through and through.

[backscatter712]

32. Me too. I was wondering if the transphobes would drop a turd in the punch bowl.

Maybe they're too punch-drunk from the last thread.

[Rex]

20. If they are like other big box fitness gyms, then she signed away all her rights

when she filled out their binding contract.

[KittyWampus]

25. The Diary has some interesting info about the case if you are interested in more than just

using this thread to get your outrage on. Glad I clicked through the link and ignored the distractions:


"There is ruthless irony in this argument because LGBT advocates have been trying to get the Elliott-Larsen Civil Rights Act changed to include the LGBT community; the full LGBT community including trans* people. It is largely because of transphobia that a move toward updating the ELCA was abandoned during the 2014 lame duck session. Now this same civil rights law is being used AGAINST a business that is simply living out its credo of being a "No Judgment Zone". To add further insult to already egregious injury, there is a legislative effort that is in its final stages that will allow businesses to deny services to people based on so-called "sincerely-held religious beliefs". Tolerance and acceptance are, apparently, not part of those religious beliefs."

[Xithras]

29. You have no legal right to gender segregated locker or bathrooms.

My current employer doesn't even have "mens" and "womens" bathrooms. We have all-stall mixed gender bathrooms where men and women do their business only feet apart, separated by nothing more than a stall wall (not floor to ceiling, but nearly so).

Planet Fitness was under no obligation to provide her with a gender specific changing area, and she launched a harassment campaign against the company and another member simply because she didn't like the way they chose to run their business. Legally, she doesn't have a leg to stand on.

[LittleBlue]

31. Transphobic bigots making a name for themselves by using the courts.

How much do you want to bet she makes the trifecta of Hannity, Billo, and Limpballs?