The Clerk Is The One Who Refuses To See

I am blind and have a guide dog. My husband and I go into a liquor store.

Clerk: “NO DOGS!”

Husband: “That’s her guide dog. She’s blind.”

Clerk: “No. Dogs.”

Husband: “He’s literally the most commonly recognised service dog.”

Me: “He’s legally allowed in the store. Call your manager if you need to verify.”

We continue into the store while I hear the clerk paging a manager. The manager finds us and says:

Manager: “Ma’am, I’m sorry. That’s obviously a service dog. You are fine. I explained it to the clerk.”

Me: “That’s okay. Everyone needs to learn sometime.”

We find what we want and head for the cash register. Neither of us looks under fifty years old.

Clerk: “I can’t sell that to you.”

Husband: “Why?”

Clerk: “Because I need to see a license for everyone, and IF she is really blind, she doesn’t have one.”

Me: “No, but I do have a state ID. You can use that.”

Clerk: “It has to be a license.”

Husband: “Call your manager now.”

Clerk: “Nope. I’m refusing service.”

Another customer overhears this and finds the manager. He comes up, gets the explanation of the problem, and seems confused.

Manager: “Have you been refusing to sell to people with state IDs instead of licenses?”

Clerk: “Only a driver’s license is valid.”

Manager: “No, only state IDs or federal IDs are valid. Driving is not necessary, just being 21 or older.”

Clerk: “You are going to get me fined for not getting proper ID! I’m not selling to a blind woman who can’t drive.”

The manager took a moment to reboot his brain. Then he sent the clerk to take out the trash and took over the register. He assured me that there was going to be a lot of retraining in his future. As he’s bagging up our purchase, I hear him mumbling.

Manager: “I guess I should just be glad he didn’t insist the dog was underage and didn’t have a driver’s license.”