El Furniture Warehouse, a restaurant and bar in Toronto, is under fire after posting this image to their Instagram account.
The caption and tags on El Furniture Warehouse's post allude to Caitlyn Jenner's recent Vanity Fair cover.
Though deleted, the post was reshared by Instagram user @chefgrantsoto with the caption "When the restaurant's social media should stick to food and staff selfies."
In a series of comments, the bar's account accused the post of being fake, called another user a "loser," and told another, "Sorry it doesn't meet your high moral standards."
Sean Young, a partner at El Furniture Warehouse, told BuzzFeed Canada the image was removed within an hour of being posted and was "a very poor representation of who we really are."
Here's his full response:
After looking into the situation, it was a repost from a popular edgy IG account, and it was actually taken down within an hour of posting, as it was in my opinion poor taste, and the imagery was also a bit much, even for our account, which is known to be slightly edgy. I spoke to the IG team and have implemented a process where all posts will be vetted before being posted.
I can assure you that the post does not represent any of the views of our staff, as we accept EVERYONE with open arms, and take pride in our diversity, whether it be race, sexual orientation, or religious views. That's exactly what makes us special.
Their private Instagram account also shared two images apologizing for the offending post.
The apology notes their Pride week event but it also referred to Jenner by her deadname — the name she used prior to her transition. As GLAAD's media guide on the matter puts it, "She has changed it, and should be accorded the same respect received by anyone who has changed their name."
Pride Toronto has clarified on Facebook that the bar's event does not have ties to their organization.
With Toronto's Pride celebration just two weeks away, some are now calling for a boycott of the bar.
@PrideToronto in 14 days. El Furniture Warehouse is NOT a safe space for our trans community, evidenced by this post
In solidarity with #TransLivesMatter, join me in boycotting El Furniture Warehouse in the Annex. #Toronto https://t.co/YVPBtzNYfh