Minnesota Teen Files Discrimination Complaint Against Buffalo Wild Wings Over Restroom Incident

Gerika Mudra, 18, says she was harassed by a server who accused her of being a boy in the girls' bathroom

An 18-year-old Minnesota woman has filed a charge of discrimination against a Buffalo Wild Wings restaurant, alleging that a server followed her into the women’s restroom and demanded she “prove” she was female.

Gerika Mudra, of Owatonna — a biracial lesbian who is not transgender — said the April incident occurred when she was dining with a friend about an hour south of Minneapolis. According to her account, when she entered the restroom, a server followed her, banged on the stall door, and stated, “This is a women’s restroom. The man needs to get out of here.”

Mudra said she has faced similar assumptions before, but people usually leave her alone after she clarifies that she is a woman. This time, however, when she exited the stall and told the server, “I am a lady,” the server insisted, “You have to get out now.” Mudra said she felt pressured to prove her gender and unzipped her hoodie to show her breasts. The server then left without further comment.

“She made me feel very uncomfortable,” Mudra said. “After that, I just don’t like going in public bathrooms. I just hold it in. I want to be able to use the bathroom in peace.”

The Minnesota gender-equality organization Gender Justice filed the discrimination charge on her behalf with the Minnesota Department of Human Rights, arguing that the incident violated the state’s Human Rights Act, which prohibits discrimination based on gender identity and sexual orientation, among other protected categories.

Sara Jane Baldwin, senior staff attorney at Gender Justice, stated that even though Mudra is not transgender, the actions taken by the server were “based on assumptions” about her appearance. She emphasized that businesses are legally required not only to have anti-discrimination policies but also to train staff to follow them.

Gender Justice described Mudra’s experience as part of a “broader climate of fear and suspicion” toward individuals who do not conform to narrow expectations of gender appearance. The group linked this climate to the wave of legislation in various states targeting transgender people’s access to school sports and bathrooms.

Buffalo Wild Wings in Owatonna, Minn

While Minnesota has not passed such laws, 19 states currently prohibit transgender individuals from using bathrooms matching their gender identity in K-12 schools, and many extend those restrictions to other public buildings. In addition, 27 states ban transgender students from playing on sports teams that align with their gender identity.

Advocates noted that women who are not transgender have also reported facing harassment in public restrooms due to mistaken assumptions, with incidents this year reported in locations including the U.S. Capitol, Phoenix, Florida, and Boston.

“This kind of gender policing is, unfortunately, nothing new,” said Megan Peterson, executive director of Gender Justice. “And yet, in our current climate we have to ask: What if Gerika had been a trans person? Would this story have ended differently? That’s the terrifying reality too many trans people live with every day.”

Minnesota is one of 21 states, along with Washington, D.C., that explicitly prohibit discrimination based on sexual orientation and gender identity in public accommodations. Two other states prohibit discrimination based only on sexual orientation, while six interpret existing sex discrimination protections to also cover sexual orientation and gender identity. Twenty-one states have no explicit protections for gender identity in public accommodations.