Earlier this month, a gay teen couple was kicked out of a restaurant for simply hugging, and it seems the restaurant is still getting away with it.
On May 13, Kendall Anderson and Peer Sevig were among a group of friends visiting the Big Boy Gyros restaurant in Washington D.C. The two reportedly hugged while in the restaurant, which seems to have upset one of the employees.
“‘We can’t have two guys hugging in here’,” Anderson told local news source CBS 2. “And then he said something to the effect of ‘if it was a guy and a girl it would be okay, but we can’t allow two boys.’”
According to the teens, they then attempted to leave, but were met with more pushback from the employee.
“Right before we left he said, ‘Get out. We don’t want your kind here, anyway,’ and that was that,” Anderson said.
CBS 2 tried to reach out to Big Boy Gyros for comment, but the establishment refused to respond. They then went to the site to ask directly, but were met with similar rejection.
Lane Tech High School, where the two boys attend class, caught wind of the incident. They then released an official statement a few days afterward to students and family through email.
“As a school, we are disheartened because our students were treated with disrespect and made to feel unwelcome,” the school’s administration said in an email to parents. “As a community, we stand strong and we want to make it clear that Lane Tech does not stand for discrimination of any kind.
“We will not tolerate hatred and will not support an organization that promotes hatred of any kind,” the email continued. “We support any students, staff and community members that choose not to support Big Boy Gyros. The incident will be addressed in person by Lane Tech’s administration.”
That said, significant time has gone by since that email was sent, and no word has been made on the issue. Big Boy Gyros refuses to comment on the situation and the school has made no comment since making that original post.
As for Anderson and Sevig, they have chosen to let the moment go. But this moment will remain with the boys for many years to come.
