Trans delivery driver confronts Popeyes employee for allegedly calling her ‘sir’

A video of a transgender delivery driver confronting a Popeyes employee is going viral, after the employee allegedly referred to the driver as “sir.” Posted on Reddit by Laura Hobbs last Friday, the clip received thousands of views and sparked a wide conversation surrounding gender pronouns.

The confrontation began while Hobbs was picking up a delivery from the restaurant, and an employee offered to get the door and referred to her as “sir.” Speaking to the Daily Dot, Hobbs said the employee had a “big grin on his face” as he made the remark.

Hobbs said she had never met the employee prior when asked if the employee was aware of her personal pronouns.

“I was about to close [when Hobbs came in] so I locked the door and then I told the customer ‘whenever your food is ready, I’ll unlock the door for you,’” Alex Prevost, who identifies as the manager, spoke to the Daily Dot Wednesday. Prevost said Hobbs misheard him and insists he didn’t refer to her as “sir.”

However, Hobbs remembers the encounter differently.

“I confronted him for addressing me as ‘sir’ and he gave me a raised eyebrow and simply denied it,” Hobbs said. “I mocked him for calling an obvious woman with breast[s] sir. I told him he’s lying and trying to gaslight me and that I was pissed and sick of people doing this.”

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Hobbs added that Prevost responded by saying, “I don’t give a fuck, bro.”

In the video, Hobbs shares her frustration with the harassment trans people experience daily.

“This happens every f***ing day. I’m so tired of it!” Hobbs says. “Why would you call a chick with big ass t**s f***ing… why would you call?”

Prevost repeatedly says, “I didn’t say that,” and Hobbs says: “No, stop trying to gaslight trans people and tell us we’re crazy… You need to f***ing be mindful of other people, and stop being a scumbag, and you’re a liar!” 

The altercation continued to escalate, followed by Hobbs being asked to leave the restaurant.

Hobbs believes Prevost should be fired from the location, explaining that the altercation “sets a dangerous” precedent for the trans community.

“It seems like they want to say that his transphobic bullying was justified because I accused him so aggressively,” Hobbs said.

“I want there to be an understanding that these transphobic comments hurt the community and it feels like Popeye’s is okay with transphobia as long as the transgender person is seen as in the wrong,” she continued. “This is very bad for transgender people who are already marginalized.”