I'm a 54 year old woman, and I was told to remove my hood before I could enter a shop lol

The UK had been pretty wet the last week or so, and yesterday was no different.

I am a 54 year old woman, and I put on my rainproof coat with it's attached hood, put the lead on my dog and set off walking to my local Tesco store. It wasn't dark, it was around 3.30pm.

I parked my dog outside the store and proceeded to enter, then a 'security' man stopped me and said I have to remove my hood or I can't enter the shop lol. I didn't want a confrontation so I complied. I was quite surprised because I'm hardly a 'hoody' thug lol. My hood was over my head because I was still outside and it was raining, I would have removed it once inside had I been given a chance.

It's coming to something when middle aged citizens are confronted at shop doorways by intimidating and burly 'security' men, and ordered to remove their headwear. I felt quite embarrassed because there were a number of customers within earshot and were looking over at me.

What's next, being frisked before entering a store?

reply to post by doobydoll


The following video clip may be of interest to you...



Man... what a crazy world we live in...

Although Bobby brings in the idea of race, into the profiling of people, the underlying premise of wearing a hoody and profiling are still applicable to your situation.

I believe the security guard wanted to see your young beautiful face.

No disrespect intended.

Ah yes. More nonsense.
Now if you were a muslim wearing a black sack from head to foot with only your eyes showing you would not have been questioned at all.
Same goes for the banks who require you to remove sunglasses and hats.

Most banks in eastern CT requires you to take off sunglasses and any head covering to conduct business inside. So says the poster on the doors. Been like that for more than a year.

It's common sense these days with face-recognition cameras in shops. Remove the hood, the sunglasses, the ski masks, gas masks, glasses-nose-mustache outfit, gunpowder plot masks, whatever is in the way. I consider it a personal law with going into banks, to show the face and find a person who works there and look them in the eye with a hello. It's polite to remove your hat when you go indoors, except women in church or at a wiskey saloon.

Your age is irrelevant. Your sex is irrelevant. It's discrimination to get privileges based on those chararcteristics. I'm surprised you didn't mention you had Christian privilege vs the Muslim headcovering etiquettes.

Whatever does the shop do when nuns arrive?

reply to post by doobydoll


I live in the same city as you, and I occasionally get told to remove my hood in certain stores. Whilst your experience may have been personally embarrassing for you, I'd look on it in a more positive way:

When these shops operate a ''no hoods'' policy, then at least they appear to be applying these rules equally. You - as a female of more mature years - have the same rules applied to you as a teenage boy would in the same environment. Surely that's the correct procedure ? Unless you'd want one rule for you, and another for someone else...

Originally posted by OhZone
Now if you were a muslim wearing a black sack from head to foot with only your eyes showing you would not have been questioned at all.

Riiiight.

So you've been to this Tesco store in Nottingham, to verify that your bizarre claim is factually accurate ?

Or are you just peddling ignorant, ill-founded hate ?

reply to post by doobydoll


You should have said - "Shall I leave my gun with you also"
I often say stupid things when out with my 80 year old parents like - "Best watch them they pinch things"
Yes what is our green and pleasant land coming to - You can not even break wind these days without it being caught on surveillance cameras

reply to post by doobydoll

The security guard probably wanted to check you out. He may have been really happy if he could have frisked you

reply to post by Sherlock Holmes

Riiiight. So you've been to this Tesco store in Nottingham, to verify that your bizarre claim is factually accurate ? Or are you just peddling ignorant, ill-founded hate ?

To be fair......he has a point!

I live in the UK...not Nottingham, so I haven't been to this store, but I wonder what the procedure there would be if someone turned up in a full burkah?.....would they be required to remove it?.....if not ....why not?

Originally posted by Argyll
To be fair......he has a point!

In fairness, his ''point'' doesn't have any substance or factual accuracy to back it up.

Originally posted by Argyll
I live in the UK...not Nottingham, so I haven't been to this store

Ergo, the original comment was worthless.

If you, or the poster who made the original, bizarre comment, aren't even aware of which shop it is, then how can such a claim be made with good intentions ?

Originally posted by Argyll
but I wonder what the procedure there would be if someone turned up in a full burkah?.....would they be required to remove it?.....if not ....why not?

Perhaps you should contact the company and make enquiries on the subject ?

You can't seriously expect to find a genuine answer to your question on these forums, so why ask it in the first place ?

In fairness, his ''point'' doesn't have any substance or factual accuracy to back it up.

reply to post by Sherlock Holmes


I never said it did!

Ergo, the original comment was worthless. If you, or the poster who made the original, bizarre comment, aren't even aware of which shop it is, then how can such a claim be made with good intentions ?

No it is not worthless nor bizarre, as to which shop it is that is a mute point....it is obviously the shop that the OP is referring to.

Perhaps you should contact the company and make enquiries on the subject ? You can't seriously expect to find a genuine answer to your question on these forums, so why ask it in the first place ?

Really?.....A member of ATS described an experience she had in a local store, thus opening the subject for discussion...yes?....I simply asked a pertinent question regarding weather a person entering the same store in Nottingham wearing a full burkah would be asked to remove it......in case you have forgotten, we are on a discussion forum...having a discussion!.....the vast majority of content posted here is opinion, I was asking for an opinion......do you have one?

I'm over fifty and I've got quite long hair. Wherever I shop I get followed by the store security. When I spot them I start walking hastily all over the store, its fun watching them trying to follow me without me noticing them.
I'm sure if they were allowed they'd ask me to remove my hair.

It seems to me theres an oppertunity for someone to open a store where - hoodys - bearded - long haired people are welcomed.

Also. Would someone intent on doing something bad, mark themselves by wearing a hood? Of course not, this is all about CONTROL.

This is a private company doing its part to keep prices lower and identify those who enter. They have cameras and they only work against crime on exposed faces. You can choose to go elsewhere to shop to try and change the policy they have set up. Soon we will all be asked to "identify" even in our own homes, with deterring crime as the objective. I don't like the trade off and I am sorry you were singled out and intimidated.

reply to post by doobydoll


You a gangsta hoodie wearing villain......

This is what happens when profiling is politically incorrect...

Can't just search a young guy that "looks" like a gang member, got to search the grandmother too.... Can't ask a Spanish person who speaks very little english if they are a citizen, got to also ask that guy who is wearing a desert storm vest and riding a HD too.

If I had brown skin and lived in AZ I would be more pissed at the illegal aliens that causes people to question my citizenship than those that may ask since 90% of illegals are brown skinned...

AND in your case we can't just focus on the young guy with a lot of tats that act, think and live like they are in a gang....no we can't.

Originally posted by Sandalphon


Whatever does the shop do when nuns arrive?

Cute, real cute. That would propose a real uncomfortable situation. Unless of course they worked for TSA. HA!!

reply to post by doobydoll


is there any chance for you to repeat this thing, while using a camera to capture it?
put it on Facebook, put it on Twitter, ask for sharing and make it clear to those Tesco folks they are about to lose money. Call for a boycott.
Just make sure you are not filming inside because this might be illegal. In the public however you can go along, even if some monkey in a uniform tries to intimidate you.

i for one would never buy anything anymore in that place.

Originally posted by Argyll
I never said it did!

Not in exact quotes, but you intimated it. Please don't bottle it now !

The suggestion that women with burqas would be able to wander freely in to this store - without having to abide by the store's laws on hoods, etc. - is nothing more than ignorant hate.

Originally posted by Argyll
No it is not worthless nor bizarre, as to which shop it is that is a mute point....it is obviously the shop that the OP is referring to.

It's both worthless and bizarre. Of course it's a moot point, because there are, at least, two dozen Tesco stores in the greater Nottingham area.

It is far from obvious which particular shop the OP is referring to.

Originally posted by Argyll
Really?.....A member of ATS described an experience she had in a local store, thus opening the subject for discussion...yes?....I simply asked a pertinent question regarding weather a person entering the same store in Nottingham wearing a full burkah would be asked to remove it......in case you have forgotten, we are on a discussion forum...having a discussion!.....the vast majority of content posted here is opinion, I was asking for an opinion......do you have one?

I refer to you my previous comment:

If you are interested in the store's policy on burqas, then why don't you contact them ?

How difficult can that be ??!! Seriously...

If, instead, you want to peddle hate, which is based on pre-conceived assumptions and unverified urban myths, then feel free.

Just don't expect the likes of me - who deals in empiricism, logic and rationality - to play along with your bizarre opinions.

Just. Remove. Your hood. Why are you walking around indoors with your hood up? It's just generally accepted these days that nobody goes into a store or a bank or a supermarket with a hood up. You should know better at your age tbh.