Life
Gay couple asked to leave a branch of Sainsbury's after a complaint about a 'light kiss'
By Stylist Team
11 years ago
A gay couple were asked to leave a Sainsbury's store after another customer complained to the security guard about the pair exchanging a kiss.
Annabelle Paige and her girlfriend were shopping in a branch of the supermarket chain in Brighton on Saturday, when they were approached by a security guard who had received a complaint from another customer.
The 22-year-old student told The Times: "I gave her a very brief light kiss, in no way was it like we were standing in the middle of Sainsbury’s making out.
"Out of the blue this security guard comes up to us and says that we can either leave and take it outside or continue our shop without being affectionate – as it was making other customers uncomfortable."
Following the incident, Annabelle and her partner left the branch of Sainsbury's, but a friend picked up on the unacceptable behaviour of the store and tweeted the Sainsbury's customer service team.
Annabelle said, "To be honest, I thought she was joking. I’ve never experienced something like that and at the same time as we were in the store there were heterosexual couples being as affectionate, if not more so.
"She told us she was sorry to have said that, but a customer had complained, saying what we were doing was ‘disgusting’ and had claimed they were worried for the safety of their child so the security guard felt she had to come and say something to us.
"I’m so shocked and upset about it. I get that if another customer is uncomfortable that’s a bad thing ... but the problem is the other customer was in the wrong and essentially being homophobic. The guard didn’t seem to understand that, I was absolutely humiliated."
The Sainsbury's customer service team responded, and promised to investigate the incident and why it had happened.
A spokesperson for the store has since given a statement apologising. "This should never have happened – it is clear that Miss Paige and her partner were not behaving inappropriately and we are very sorry that they were treated in this way. We have called Miss Paige to apologise and will be making a donation to a charity of her choice."
undefined
By signing up you agree to occasionally receive offers and promotions from Stylist. Newsletters may contain online ads and content funded by carefully selected partners. Don’t worry, we’ll never share or sell your data. You can opt-out at any time. For more information read Stylist’s Privacy Policy
Thank you!
You’re now subscribed to all our newsletters. You can manage your subscriptions at any time from an email or from a MyStylist account.