After Public Backlash, Washington Coffee Shop Removes Shockingly Transphobic, Ableist Sign

A Spokane, Washington, coffee stand has taken down a transphobic and ableist sign after community backlash, according to local newspaper The Spokesman-Review. 2nd Base Espresso adjusted the reader board outside its business earlier this month to display the message “Trans women are retarded men.” The sign was removed by July 14, per local NBC affiliate KHQ, but only after multiple residents lobbied city officials over the flagrantly offensive message. Despite these complaints, the mayor’s office originally said that the sign was protected as free speech. “While we do not condone this type of messaging, it is our understanding that it’s protected under the First Amendment,” Erin Hut, the city’s director of communications and marketing, told KHQ. “Anyone who believes they’ve been subjected to a hate crime or bias incident is encouraged to call the Washington Hate Crimes and Bias Incidents Hot Line.”Per the Spokesman-Review, 2nd Base Espresso is often known for putting up “offensive and often inappropriate signs.” (Indeed, the sign featuring the transphobic and ableist slur was reportedly replaced with one telling people to “Calm your tits.”)In the past, the sign has included crude and demeaning references to sex, genitalia, deportations, and Mexican people. In 2017, 2nd Base Espresso put up a sign that said, “Why can’t u play Uno with Mexicans? They take all the green cards,” the Spokesman-Review reported at the time. The business received a flood of negative reviews online after its most recent sign, leading Yelp to temporarily shut down its page. Several recent one-star reviews trash the business for its signage. “This establishment should be ashamed of itself. The fact you think it’s funny to put such nasty messages about your fellow human beings on your sign is appalling,” one review stated, per the Spokesman-Review.One local resident told the Spokesman-Review that, while the signage has had some offensive words in the past,