Transgender-Rights Activists Accuse J.Crew of Discrimination

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J.Crew is forever urging women to borrow their boyfriends' shirts, but according to civil rights group Make the Road New York, that's about as open-minded as the company gets when it comes to gender expression. The group staged a protest outside the J.Crew on Fifth Avenue on Sunday after the store failed a test to see whether it would hire a transgender worker.

Make the Road sent two equally-matched applicants, one trans and one not, to 24 different stores. At J.Crew, the trans applicant was treated dismissively, while his testing partner was offered a job. Interestingly, of the 24 stores surveyed, only Dean & Deluca offered jobs to both testers, and the only place that offered a job solely to the transgender tester was the Virgin Megastore—which can't be much solace to New York's transgender population, since the Virgin stores closed last year.

· J.Crew Accused of Discrimination· Transgender Need Not Apply At J.Crew [Gothamist]
· 'Transgender people need not apply' at J. Crew says Make the Road New York advocacy group [NYDN]