ILLINOIS – A transgender man who was turned away from two Walmart stores when he sought to cash a money order in October 2021 has reached a settlement with the retail chain. The settlement comes after a unanimous panel of the Illinois Human Rights Commission found that there was substantial evidence of sex and gender-identity discrimination when the Walmart stores denied services to Skyler Hyatt simply because he was transgender. The settlement resolves the matter for both Hyatt and Walmart.
“Being able to do something as basic as cashing a money order without harassment is critical to transgender people all across the State of Illinois,” said Skyler Hyatt who filed the charges. “This is especially important because we know that so many transgender people do not have a bank account and so many people rely on retail chains like Walmart for such services in Illinois.”
The settlement today resolves questions first raised when Hyatt presented a money order to be cashed at the Lawrenceville Walmart Supercenter. Along with the money order, Hyatt produced a valid Illinois driver’s license with the name matching the name on the money order. The license had the gender marked as Male, reflected Hyatt’s prior legal name, and a photo of Hyatt as then appeared with a short haircut and facial hair.
A Walmart supervisor looked at the money order and state identification and made a face of disgust. Feeling nervous, Hyatt made a joke about the old Johnny Cash song, “A Boy Named Sue,” and then explained he was transgender and had been unable to change his name because of the cost of the process. The supervisor rolled her eyes and denied service to Hyatt.
A few days later, Hyatt and his wife traveled to another Walmart Supercenter, this time in Olney. Again, he presented a valid driver’s license and money order, with the names aligned on both documents. This time, Hyatt was told that Walmart would not cash the money order because it had been “red flagged.”
The following day, Hyatt and his wife opened a new bank account at Peoples State Bank in Sumner, Illinois. They used the money order to open the account. When they told the bank employee that Walmart would not cash the money order, she was puzzled and said that it didn’t make sense since the documents all matched. The ease of opening a bank account with the same identification led Hyatt to file the charges of discrimination against Walmart.
“We are thrilled that this matter has been resolved for Skyler,” said Michelle García, Deputy Legal Director for the ACLU of Illinois who represented Hyatt in his case. “It also is gratifying that Walmart has made clear that what happened to Skyler is not consistent with their store policy. This resolution should send a strong signal to all Walmart employees and stores to treat transgender customers with dignity and respect.”
“It is really good to see this matter resolved, ending any further need for legal action,” added Hyatt. “My hope is that other transgender people in Southern Illinois and across the state will see that they can defend their rights under Illinois law.”
