A blind Singaporean had brought her guide dog into a Forever 21 outlet, only to be stopped three times by staff who treated her poorly. One of them also told her that no dogs were allowed in the store.
The 33-year-old psychotherapist is the second Singaporean trained to use a guide dog to help her move around. She had contracted Stargardt disease at the age of eight, and lost her vision over time.
According to a report in The Straits Times, Ms Cassandra Chiu had visited the fashion chain's Orchard Exchange outlet with her six-year old daughter, a maid and her labrador, Esme.
When she headed into a changing room to try on a pair of pants, a staff member told her that no dogs were allowed in the store. When Ms Chiu started to explain that Emse was her guide dog, the staff member had already walked away.
Thinking that the staff member had understood that Esme was a guide dog, Ms Chiu continued heading towards the changing rooms. There, she was once again stopped by another staff member who told her that she needed to speak to the manager.
When no manager arrived after 10 to 15 minutes of waiting, Ms Chiu got frustrated and went to try on the pants. Upon exiting the changing room, a third staff member told Ms Chiu to stop and dragged her back into the room.
Finally, another staff member intervened to say that guide dogs are allowed in the store. Ms Chiu told her to "ask the staff to stop harassing me" and left the store with her purchase of pants.
Ms Chiu shared her experience on a Facebook page she had set up in Emse's name, sparking outrage among netizens.
The Singapore management of Forever 21 apologized on the post and said they would like to meet Ms Chiu to apologise in person, but she declined.
"I don't think that's necessary. The problem is that we need to have a more inclusive society. If they want to do something, they should put a guide dog decal in their store so there won't be questions about whether guide dogs are allowed inside," said Ms Chiu.
Photos: ST
