Bar Owners Can Throw Out MAGA Hat Wearers, Judge Says

WEST VILLAGE, NY — A Manhattan Supreme Court justice dismissed a lawsuit on Wednesday filed by a Trump supporter who said he was kicked out of a West Village bar because he was wearing a pro-Trump hat.

Greg Piatek accused the bar The Happiest Hour of discriminating against him and his "spiritual creed," because, according to him, he was kicked out of the bar in January 2017 for wearing the hat.

Justice David Cohen sided with the watering hole on Wednesday, ruling that that Piatek hadn't proven "any faith-based principle to which the hat relates," according to the New York Post, which first reported on the ruling.

Piatek angrily accused the bar, located at 121 W. 10th St., of kicking him and his friends out in January 2017 because he was wearing a "Make America Great Again" hat, the signature red cap associated with President Donald Trump's campaign. Piatek and his friend had visited the National 9/11 Memorial and Museum before stopping by the bar, and Piatek claimed that he was wearing the hat as a "spiritual tribute" to the victims of 9/11. Piatek accused the bar's employees and manager of refusing to serve him and his friends and then ejecting them from the bar when he refused to remove his hat.

Attorneys for The Happiest Hour countered Piatek's claims with a copy of his receipt, showing that he bought 16 drinks at the bar over the course of two hours and left a 20 percent tip on his bar tab.

"He paid for all those drinks using his credit card, and that he was sufficiently pleased with his service at the bar that he added a 20% gratuity to the bill," attorneys representing the bar and its owner said in court documents.

The bar also argued that support for a political candidate didn't constitute a religious belief.

Cohen, the judge, sided with the bar on Wednesday, ruling that Piatek hadn't proven that the "Make America Great Again" hat aligned with any religion or faith.

"Here the claim that plaintiff was not served and eventually escorted out of the bar because of his perceived support for President Trump is not outrageous conduct," Cohen ruled, according to the Post.

"At the Happiest Hour we firmly support womens' [sic] rights, marriage equality, gun control, the environment, and regard for the truth- we don’t discriminate," bar owner Jon Neidich said in a statement. "What's gotten lost in this story is that the guest wasn't kicked out because he was wearing a Trump hat- he was asked to leave after being verbally abusive to our staff, which is something we don't tolerate regardless of who you are. And this is after he spent almost $200- the 20% tip he left would seem to indicate he was satisfied with the service he received."

This post was updated with comment from Jon Neidich.

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