Bars Can Refuse Service To Trump Supporters, Judge Says
A judge in New York City has ruled in favor of a bar that kicked someone out for wearing a "Make America Great Again" hat. According to the New York Post, Greg Piatek, an accountant from Philadelphia, was booted from The Happiest Hour in January of 2017, just after Donald Trump's inauguration, because he was wearing a red MAGA cap.
So the 31-year-old sued the place, claiming the incident "offended his sense of being American," according to the lawsuit. But according to The Happiest Hour's lawyer, Elizabeth Conway, political beliefs are not protected from discrimination by law — only religious beliefs are.
"Supporting Trump is not a religion," she said, according to The Post, to which Piatek's attorney, Paul Liggieri counterpointed, "The purpose of the hat is that he wore it because he was visiting the 9/11 Memorial. He was paying tribute to the victims of 9/11. The Make America Great Again hat was part of his spiritual belief."
A Trump supporter was thrown out of a NYC bar for wearing a MAGA hat. He later sued and lost the case after a judge ruled the bar was allowed to throw out Trump supporters (@AP) pic.twitter.com/b2BEoTR1vx
— Joel Franco (@OfficialJoelF) April 26, 2018
After an hourlong investigation into Piatek's alleged "spiritual program," the judge decided that there was nothing "outrageous" about the Trump supporter's removal from the bar. It's unclear at this time whether the decision will be appealed, but if Piatek plans on patronizing this bar again, he may want to leave his trucker hat at home.
The Daily Meal has reached out to The Happiest Hour for comment.
This may seem like a silly lawsuit, but believe it or not, people have sued for much stranger reasons.