Mudra v. Buffalo Wild Wings:
Defending Victims of Anti-Trans Bathroom Panic
No one should be harassed in a public bathroom just for being themselves.
High schooler Gerika Mudra was out to dinner with a friend, just a normal evening. Until she got up to use the bathroom.
A server followed her into the women’s restroom, pounded on the stall door, and demanded she prove she belonged there. Why? Because Gerika didn’t fit someone else’s idea of what a girl “should” look like.
Scared, trapped, and humiliated, Gerika was forced to unzip her hoodie to show she had breasts—just to make it stop.
This wasn’t just wrong, it was illegal. And it’s part of a larger, dangerous trend.
How We Make Change
What We Fight For
Where Barriers Occur
What Happened to Gerika Is Illegal
In Minnesota, the law is clear: in Minnesota, places open to the public cannot discriminate based on gender identity or expression, sexual orientation, sex, or race. They are also required to train staff, enforce anti-discrimination policies, and ensure their spaces are safe and welcoming to everyone.
Gender Justice has filed a charge of discrimination with the Minnesota Department of Human Rights (MDHR) on Gerika’s behalf. MDHR is the state agency responsible for enforcing the Minnesota Human Rights Act, one of the strongest civil rights laws in the country.
This Is Bigger Than One Restaurant
What happened to Gerika didn’t come out of nowhere. It’s part of a growing climate of fear and suspicion—fueled by anti-trans rhetoric, political attacks and misinformation—that encourages people to police others’ bodies and identities.
Trans and gender noncomforming people are bearing the brunt, especially trans women of color, who face disproportionate levels of harassment, criminalization, and physical violence.
But it doesn’t stop there.
Gerika is a biracial lesbian teenager. She’s not transgender, but the harassment she experienced is the same kind of treatment that trans and gender-nonconforming people are subjected to every day.
This is the heart of anti-trans panic: a culture where gender nonconformity becomes grounds for harassment. Where racism, sexism, and transphobia collide. Where Black and brown women, girls, and gender-expansive people are disproportionately targeted for not looking or acting the way others expect. Where people feel entitled to question others’ humanity, and where businesses and institutions too often look the other way.
Your Support Makes This Work Possible
We’re proud to stand with Gerika and her family as they seek justice—not just for themselves, but to make public spaces safer for everyone.
At Gender Justice, we take on these fights because no one should have to face this kind of harassment alone, and it’s your support that makes it possible. With your support, we hold businesses accountable, protect civil rights, and shine a light on the broader systems that fuel discrimination.
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