CEO Fired After Accusations He Harassed Boy Wearing Dress To His Prom
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The CEO of a company in Tennessee has been sacked after he was spotted in a video, appearing to mock a teenage boy who went to his prom in a dress on Saturday night:
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Sam Johnson, the CEO of telemedicine company VisuWell, said that 18-year-old Dalton Stevens looked like an 'idiot' after he decided to attend his senior prom in Franklin wearing a gown.
For his part, Stevens said that he decided to go wearing the dress because 'clothing is really genderless' and 'has no meaning', which is a fair enough statement.
However, while he was taking pictures with his boyfriend at a hotel ahead of the Franklin High School prom, a man eventually approached them to ask whether Stevens knew what he was wearing.
The man, alleged to have been Johnson, then asked why he was wearing the dress.
Stevens said he responded: "I think I look good in it and that I really like the dress, and I want to show that clothing is genderless,"
He added: "And I explained that to him, and he continued to just call me names and just follow me."
The student alleges that Johnson called him 'stupid' and used vulgar words in a homophobic fashion towards him, saying that because he has 'hair on [his] chest, [he] shouldn't be wearing a dress'.
During their encounter, Stevens' boyfriend Jacob Geitmann began recording.
In the footage, Stevens can be heard telling a man in a blue shirt to 'f**k off', while the man replies that Stevens looks 'disgusting'.
Then, after calling Stevens an 'idiot', the man attempted to knock the phone from Geitmann's hand, but inadvertently hit Stevens instead.
The viewed was later shared online and picked up by NBC News.
VisuWell later tweeted that it has a zero-tolerance policy towards intolerance and said that Johnson's actions 'contradicted the high standards we set for ourselves'.
The company added: "We unequivocally condemn the behaviour exhibited by Sam Johnson in a recent video widely circulated on social media.
"After investigating the matter and speaking to individuals involved, the VisuWell BOD has chosen to terminate Mr. Johnson from his position as CEO, effective immediately."
Johnson has denied that he was harassing the pair, claiming that the video was edited and that he went over because the teenagers were being loud and vulgar.
He told Newsweek: "We had just sat down for dinner at this restaurant that we frequent, and I was returning from the restroom when I was presented with their loud cursing.
"Making it about the dress was their idea, and they edited out most of the exchange."
Stevens denies Johnson's claims that the group were being loud or vulgar.
Featured Image Credit: Twitter
Topics: US News
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