A man fired from a Louisiana Chili’s is claiming he was fired for refusing to use a non-binary coworker’s preferred name, while the restaurant insists he was fired for “harassment.” Wesley Kirk Ford Jr., an employee at a Chili’s in Denham Springs, posted on his Facebook  July11^th that he had been fired. “I just got fired from Chilis in Denham Springs for calling a nonbinary coworker by her actual legal government name lolol,” wrote Ford. “I now need to find a new job. I also need to find a first amendment/civil rights attorney.”  In a comment, he shared an image that he claimed was given to him as his reason for being terminated. “Wes continued to call TM Fish by her dead name, even though he was requested to stop by tm and management,” the paper stated. “He refused to call her by her preferred name and used her government name instead to the point that she was physically unable to continue her shift.” Ford noted the paperwork was ironic because it referred to the employee as “her” when she uses “they/them” pronouns. “Fish” is the employee’s preferred name while her legal name is “Madeline.”

Ford recorded management reading his termination notice and posted it online. In the video, Ford can be heard laughing in disbelief when it is noted that Madeline was unable to complete her shift. “She was physically unable to continue her shift because I called her Madeline four times?” he asked incredulously. The video went viral, being shared by numerous conservative influencers, including Libs of TikTok. Ford posted a separate video stating he was shocked by the attention he was receiving and that he appreciated the support he had received. He called what had happened to him “an injustice.” “I have never been fired from a job ever in my life before. I’ve never been asked to quit, resign, I’ve never been asked for that … I’ve never been written up at a job. I have never been reprimanded, disciplined, at any job. I have no disciplinary record at any time,” he claimed. “And I got fired for the first time today, from Chili’s, for doing the high crime of calling my coworker, whose name is Madeline, by her name, which is Madeline.”

In a statement to Fox News, Chili’s defended Ford’s firing. “While we normally do not comment on people-related matters, we believe it is important to clarify the actions taken in this situation. The individual was terminated due to repeated instances of harassment toward his fellow team member, which is in violation of our policies, to the point the team member was unable to continue the shift,” the company stated. “The terminated individual was repeatedly asked to stop the harassing behavior, but he refused.” Ford has insisted that he is seeking out his legal options. “I’m not participating in that s— anymore,” he said. “Like, I don’t care. I don’t care, I put my foot down. And I’m just not, I’m not participating in it.”