A security guard at a Boston hotel was suspended after being accused of forcibly removing a woman from a bathroom after confronting her about her gender, the hotel confirmed to Newsweek.
Why It Matters
The incident, which stirred backlash against the Liberty Hotel in Boston’s Beacon Hill neighborhood, comes amid what many LGBTQ+ people view as a rise in anti-trans rhetoric, particularly surrounding transgender women’s access to women’s bathrooms. Critics have warned that the rising tensions could have ramifications for all women, regardless of whether they are transgender.
What To Know
Elizabeth Victor wrote in a since-removed Google review that she and her girlfriend, Ansley Baker, attended a Kentucky Derby party at the luxury hotel on Saturday. She wrote that Baker, described as a “6-foot tall, short haired woman,” was “forcibly removed from the woman’s restroom” by a staff member who required them to show her ID to prove her gender.
“This was not just unprofessional — it was traumatizing, discriminatory, and dehumanizing,” the review wrote. “My partner and I are devastated.”
In a statement provided to Newsweek, the hotel confirmed the guard had been suspended following an investigation.
“The Liberty Hotel is and always will be an ally of the LGBTQ+ community and a place where everyone is welcome and celebrated,” the statement reads. “We will continue to educate and train our team to ensure that everyone feels safe and accepted within our four walls and guests who do not show tolerance and acceptance towards others will be removed.”
Contact information for Baker and Victor could not be found. Newsweek reached out to a family member for comment via Facebook.
But CBS News reported that the hotel previously said that “several women alerted security of two adults sharing a bathroom stall,” but the couple have denied they were ever in a stall together.
What People Are Saying
Nina Selvaggio, executive director of the Greater Boston PFLAG, told CBS News: “For gender nonconforming, lesbians, women in general, being harassed in public restrooms is a tale as old as time. I do think the surge in national anti-trans rhetoric is contributing to an increased policing of women’s bodies and their expression of gender.”
The couple told WCVB: “We have not seen any public statement with an apology nor a retraction of their original claims to clarify that Ansley was the only one in the stall.”
What Happens Next
In addition to the suspension, the hotel said it would reach out to Baker and Victor, conduct mandatory retraining for all staff members on inclusive practices starting next week and make a donation to a local LGBTQ+ organization they have partnered with in the past, according to the statement provided to Newsweek.
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