An act of “blatant homophobia” left a 19-year-old server in tears after a customer from a table he’d served left a hateful message on the receipt.
“That hurt me, a lot. I’m not the type to cry at work but I have to say that definitely was the first time that had happened to me," said Noah Bierig, who works for the restaurant Bubba’s 33 in Wichita, Kansas.
Highlights
- A 19-year-old gay server was reduced to tears by a homophobic slur left on a receipt.
- Friends of the server used a photo of the receipt to raise thousands of dollars in support.
- The homophobic customer faced severe online backlash and publicly apologized.
The server was wearing a pride bracelet and painted nails when the incident occurred, which he believes to have been an indicator for the customers, who immediately started staring at and mocking him.
"Every time I would walk away, they would kind of just start laughing a little bit."
But Noah’s friends wouldn’t let the situation stand, and they utilized a photo of the written derogatory term to launch an online campaign that ended up not only covering the server’s missing tip but exceeding it by thousands of dollars.
A gay waiter was brought to tears after a rude customer left a homophobic slur on a receipt, sparking online backlash
Image credits: KAKENews
This was the first time Bierig was subjected to hateful remarks over his sexuality since he came out in 8th grade.
“I have received nothing but support,” he said, explaining that he was “not used to blatant homophobia like that.”
After the incident, friends of Bierig shared the photo of the receipt online, where the insult can be seen where the tip amount should’ve been.
"I looked at one of their receipts and I noticed that it had a certain three-letter derogatory term written on it," the server said.
The picture, which has since been blurred, originally contained both the signature and full name of the rude customer, which led to him getting chastised online for his homophobic behavior.
Image credits: Southeast Journalism
After he and his spouse received a barrage of comments, phone calls, and messages, the patron took to social media to apologize.
“I was going to wait until the morning to say anything. I know it was wrong of me to write what I did and for that I am very sorry,” he wrote.
“The overall dining experience wasn’t that great and I shouldn’t have dealt with it by saying what I did. I have learned a valuable lesson in all of this and nothing like this will ever happen again.”
His regret did little to calm the waters, and the rude customer was forced to delete all of his social media accounts after his wife, who was not with him at the restaurant, started getting threats.
“I never wanted her to get the backlash of this. Her business is being harassed now,” he stated.
The server’s friends contacted a local LGBTQ+ non-profit to set up a fundraiser in hopes of covering his missing tip, with the end result far exceeding their expectation
Image credits: James Blick
On the flip side, Bierig received an outpour of support, as his friends set up an online fundraiser through Proud of Wichita, a non-profit that labels itself as an “LGBT Chamber of Commerce.”
“Our friend Noah works as a server here in Wichita, and recently some jerk from out of town refused to tip and left a slur on the receipt instead,” the fundraiser page states.
“While sending a tip can't fix that the LGBTQ community still deals with this kind of hate in 2024, it can fix that Noah was left empty-handed. We've connected with Noah and his mom, Sarah, and they are grateful for any contributions you make. He says he intends to donate to organizations he supports.”
The campaign appears to have been a success. According to Dailymail, it has collected thousands of dollars, which Bierig intends to donate to GLSEN, a firm dedicated to stopping discrimination, bullying, harassment, and other types of attacks against LGBTQ+ citizens.
“[The support] is absolutely insane. I never thought anything like this would happen based off just a couple Facebook posts from my friends and family,” Bierig stated.
The insults garnered almost universal scorn among netizens, with many congratulating the young man for donating the funds to charity, while others expressed concern at the ease with which the customer’s personal information was divulged
Image credits: James Blick
“Actions have consequences. Even more so in our modern technology driven society. When I was growing up I was always told I needed to watch how I behaved and what I said as it could end up on my permanent record,” one reader shared.
“Consequences. He probably didn’t realize his name was on there. It’s the lack of consequences that is wrong with today’s society that make people think there are no rules and they can do whatever they want,” argued another.
“Now this is an outcome I love. This young man probably could have taken in lots on a go fund me, but instead it’s all going to a charity,” said one viewer.
“He did wrong yet people threaten him and his loved ones and don’t see that as equally bad if not worse? This doesn’t excuse what he did but should those threatening him and his partner now be called out, named and shamed in the same way?” said another.
“Is it legal for waiting staff to take photos of credit card receipts and share them with friends? If I were his boss, I would be having a serious conversation with him about this data breach,” expressed a reader.
"Do the crime, do the time." Netizens joined in scorn against the customer for his homophobic insult
