An apparently sexist note to a North Carolina veteran has led to a public rebuttal that has now gone viral.
WBTV reported last week that Rebecca Landis Hayes, who served eight years in the U.S. Navy, was surprised to find a note on her vehicle after parking in a "veteran parking spot" at the Harris Teeter in Concord.
The note scolded her for parking in the spot, seemingly unaware that Hayes was in fact a veteran herself.
"This parking is for Veterans, lady. Learn to read [and] have some respect," the note read, according to the television station.
Hayes responded with a public message that she posted on her Facebook page.
"I'm sorry that you can't see my eight years of service in the United Sates Navy," Hayes said on Facebook.
"I'm sorry that your narrow misogynistic world view can't conceive of the fact that there are female veterans. I'm sorry that I have to explain myself to people like you. Mostly, I'm sorry that we didn't get a chance to have this conversation face to face, and that you didn't have the integrity and intestinal fortitude to identify yourself, qualities the military emphasizes."
The Facebook post has been shared more than 12,600 times since Hayes posted it on June 13.
"At first, I thought someone had left a note because they hit my car or something like that," Hayes, whose husband served in the Army, said to WBTV. She said the note initially made her cry.
"Veterans come in all shapes, sizes, genders and colors," Hayes told WBTV. "More veterans don't fit that stereotype than do."
Hayes told Fox 46 Charlotte that she has been approached by others who wanted to thank her for her time in the military.
"I was reached out to by a woman and her husband who wanted to offer me a free week at their vacation rental in Hilton Head to thank me for my service," Hayes said, according to Fox 46 Charlotte, but they ultimately declined the offer.
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