Apple Store Allegedly Printed Gay Slur On Receipt

An Apple store in Portland, Oregon, stands accused of typing a gay slur on a receipt for a pair of earpods.

The transaction occurred in July, but the customer posted the receipt to his Facebook page earlier this week, and it found its way to other social media sites since then.

Adam Gregory Cantanzarite, the customer, explained on Facebook what happened as he perceived it:

So here’s a thing. I got called a f@g by an #Apple employee here in #Portland. The store manager did not do what he said he would to rectify the situation, so now I feel it is important to share the story. Being queer and having worked with queer youth, I know first-hand that this is an example of the type of #homophobic beliefs and actions that lead young people to harm themselves. This type of action is NOT OKAY, especially from a company that prides itself on being LGBTQ inclusive and welcoming. My friends, I please ask that you like this status or share it with your networks to let them know that #homophobia does not have a place in PDX (or anywhere) and that you reconsider where you spend your money. Perhaps the #Applestore is not so deserving.”

An HIV prevention specialist with a local nonprofit organization serving the AIDS community, Catanzarite wrote in a follow-up post that the apologetic store manager was “kind and reasonable” and gave him a gift card and offered to provide a full refund for the headphones while allowing him to keep them.

He added, “Due to the policies of the organization, I will not know the intent of the individual who put in f@g.com as my email address. It is possible that this could have been made in error, but the impact of the action remains the same. The employee who entered f@g.com should not be fired (take a minute to let that settle in if you need to), but should be given an opportunity to learn about the impact of the use of the word fag and how these words impact the individuals who have been oppressed by them…”

When a Portland Oregonian reporter called the Apple store in question about the homophobic slur allegation, “a woman who answered the phone… directed questions about the incident to Apple’s corporate headquarters. There, Apple spokeswoman Michaela Wilkerson said the company is aware of the incident, but declined to say more.”