Stuff
Baby Store Owner Acknowledges Under-Privileged Lesbian Moms, Mass Chaos Ensues
Karen Paperno, the owner of Boing Boing maternity boutique in Brooklyn, announced that she would allow a ten percent discount to lesbian mommies. Her reasoning was that female-headed households make less money, which has been proven to be true. Yet upon implementing the discount, Paperno received a series of homophobic phone calls from people living out of state. As bizarre as Paperno’s policy may seem, the majority of her straight-identified customers do not take issue with the discount.
Some commentators have called the lesbian friendly policy blatantly discriminatory, but Paperno’s personal decision to try and make things a little more even, atleast in her store, speaks volumes as to the amount of privilege that heterosexual parents enjoy everyday.
Legally, Paperno is in the clear:
“If she wants to offer a discount to a group she thinks is underprivileged, she’s entitled to,” said discrimination lawyer Murray Schwartz, adding that customers don’t have the same rights as employees. “Retailers can basically do whatever they want.”