While working out at a local gym, a man was told to remove his Trump T-shirt when the gym’s owner said that she and other patrons found it to be offensive.
Army veteran Jake Talbot was wearing a “2016 Trump for President” shirt at CDY Gym on Sunday when gym owner, Liz Drew, told him that the shirt is associated with racism, The St. Louis Post reported.
“The owner, Liz, came up to me and said my Trump shirt I had on was offensive and that I’d need to remove it in order to work out there, and it’s linked to racism,” Talbot said.
Talbot completed his workout, but vows he will never return to that gym.
He posted a video about the unpleasant incident on his Facebook page and numerous angry viewers have decided to hold the gym owner accountable, Fox 2 Now reported.
Drew said that she got countless messages from people who were downright mad, and she even received arson threats.
Many people, some members of the gym and some not, said that Drew’s request was “discriminatory.” Several said they would cancel their membership with the gym.
She said she had no choice but to delete the gym’s Facebook page.
Before she deleted the page, she posted a message saying, “I don’t believe our gym should be a political forum for anyone. I want everyone to feel safe and comfortable there.”
Drew, who purchased the gym in 2017 after being employed there for a decade, claims that Talbot’s recollection of the confrontation is inaccurate.
While Talbot was unavailable for comment, Drew claims, “I said, ‘Jake, we’re friends and I love you, but I’d appreciate it if you didn’t wear that shirt in the future.'”
“This was about protecting the comfort level of all members and keeping politics out of my gym. Sadly, it has done just the opposite,” she said.
Gym member’s Trump shirt sparks political firestorm at Troy, Mo., fitness center https://t.co/idGCqOUR5g pic.twitter.com/IrY5aiNetR
— St. Louis Post-Dispatch (@stltoday) January 23, 2019
It wasn’t the first time that Talbot wore the Trump shirt to the gym, according to Drew, who said she received complaints from African-American and Hispanic patrons in the past.
She added that her conversation with Talbot regarding the shirt was something that she mulled over for a while.
Since the incident, Talbot canceled his membership at the gym, along with two other members, however, Drew said 10 new members have joined.
