No one wants to work out next to white supremacist Richard Spencer. This shouldn’t come as a surprise after a group who lobbied to “save” Confederate statues in New Orleans disavowed Spencer’s KKK-esque march. He will also never live down that punch in the face, the CPAC ejection, or the Auburn University jeers when he called for football to be abolished, so a gym seems like the next logical place to ban Spencer. And that’s exactly what happened, once his notoriety was exposed to management.
The ID arrived courtesy of a Georgetown University professor (C. Christine Fair), who posted her story on her Tumblr blog. She recognized Spencer in the weights section and asked if he was the Richard Spencer. He denied as much, and she told the Washington Post what happened next:
“I said, ‘Of course you are, so not only are you a Nazi — you are a cowardly Nazi,'” Fair said in an interview, invoking a common characterization of Spencer. “I just want to say to you, I’m sick of your crap — that this country belongs [to people like you]. … As a woman, I find your statements to be particularly odious; moreover, I find your presence in this gym to be unacceptable, your presence in this town to be unacceptable.”
You can see a photo of Fair confronting Spencer right here. She says that he then (hilariously) sought assistance from a black female gym employee (a trainer) to “help him escape,” and long story short, the Old Town Sport&Health gym (in Alexandria, Virginia) terminated his membership because multiple other patrons had also spotted him and wanted him gone.
Fair told Buzzfeed News that she was actually surprised when Spencer was banned but realizes that the gym “ultimately made a business decision.” The outlet also spoke with Spencer, who confirmed his banning but doesn’t think it’s fair: “I’m really a model-gym goer. I don’t bother anyone. I don’t talk to anyone. I really just go and lift weights,”
(Via Washington Post & Buzzfeed News)