A transgender woman was refused entry to a Virginia theme park for wearing a skirt a security guard deemed ‘a costume’
A transgender woman and her girlfriend were refused entry to an amusement park after a security guard described her choice of attire to be ‘a costume.’
The couple was preparing to walk into Busch Gardens Williamsburg in James City County, Virginia Saturday afternoon before they were shooed away when the guard took one look at the transgender woman’s skirt.
The man reportedly shook his head, and said to her clearly: ‘You can’t come in here because you are wearing a costume,’ her girlfriend, Bria Gibson, told WTVR, while keeping her partner’s identity undisclosed.
Gibson then told the guard: ‘(After I said) ‘What costume do you think she’s wearing?’ he completely ignored us and shooed us away and nothing more to say on the subject and there was nothing more we could do about it.’
The pair was excited to attend the theme park’s seasonal Halloween event, ‘Howl-o-Scream’ before they were asked to leave the venue.
The incident took place on Saturday at the Busch Gardens Williamsburg in James City County, Virginia
The guard man reportedly shook his head, and said to her clearly: ‘You can’t come in here because you are wearing a costume’
The pair were excited to attend the theme park’s seasonal Halloween event, ‘Howl-o-Scream’
The park has a policy saying visitors are not permitted to wear costumes to protect their employees
The transgender woman had been wearing a bold, colorful ankle-length skirt at the time – which initiated the incident.
According to the newspaper, Busch Gardens holds a dress code which says visitors are not permitted to wear costumes while at the amusement park.
The reason for the policy is to protect ‘their performers who often wear their costumes in the park,’ and more specifically, during major holiday events.
When the pair took the matter to the guest relations department, Gibson (pictured) decided to swap her shorts with her girlfriend’s skirt – which finally allowed them entry to the park
Regardless, Gibson felt the manner of the guard was demeaning, seeing as her girlfriend felt most ‘comfortable’ in the choice of attire – which was not intended to be seen as a costume.
After taking up the matter with the guest relations department, Gibson decided to swap her shorts with her girlfriend’s skirt, which finally allowed them entry.
‘(The skirt) looked more ridiculous with what I was wearing,’ Gibson said.
‘(The skirt) looked more ridiculous with what I was wearing,’ Gibson said in a statement
Busch Gardens since issued a statement on the matter saying: ‘On this particular occasion, our security professionals interpreted the attire to be a costume, especially given the time of year when our Howl-O-Scream event is occurring’
‘There’s just no reason for them to do something like that to a couple of people who just wanted to had out and have fun at the park.’
Gibson revealed she ‘had to comfort’ her girlfriend after the incident, adding, ‘She was going to cry over this. It’s basically saying your identity isn’t real.’
Busch Gardens since issued a public statement on the matter: ‘We are committed to providing an enjoyable experience for all guests. We respect the rights of people to dress as the gender with which they identify and in a way that enables them and others to safely experience our parks.
We welcome transgender guests in our parks. On this particular occasion, our security professionals interpreted the attire to be a costume, especially given the time of year when our Howl-O-Scream event is occurring,’ the statement read.
‘Unfortunately, we misapplied the park’s policy of not allowing costumes in the park. We will take steps to evaluate future application of this policy. We have been in contact with the guests and have invited them to visit again soon.’