Don Sucher has been running the Sucher and Son's Star Wars Shop in Aberdeen Washington, specializing in memorabilia from the iconic franchise for the better part of 25 years.
But he recently made national headlines for a sign he posted outside his shop.
The handwritten sign promoted a "new book" by Dr. Seuss, who has been dead since 1991, titled If you are born with a d*ck, you are not a chick, (period).
Not everyone took took kindly to the sign and its transphobic message, least of all elected transgender councilwoman Tiesa Meskis as reported by King 5 News.
In Meskis confronted Sucher about the content of his sign in his store, recorded in a cell phone video, which see's Sucher confront Meskis right back, telling her:
"You are not a woman, you don't look like a woman, you don't act like a woman."
The video then follows Meskis outside the shop as she yells "Trans women are women" as Sucher tells her, "you are not a chick."
While Meskis acknowledged to King 5 News that Sucher has the right to free speech, she says she simply could not be silent at the offensive and hurtful content on his sign.
"What he wrote there was so demeaning and so dismissive of who I am, who any trans woman is."
"We are people. We are who we are and we all want to be accepted in our community."
But Sucher showed no sympathy or regret as to hurting Meskin's, or anyone's feelings, saying anyone who took offense at the sign didn't have to shop at his store, going on to tell King 5 News
"I don't give a sh*t about feelings anymore. I went to Vietnam to fight for this sh*t."
"Do you think I care about some sh*t feeling? Absolutely not!"
Sucher also claimed that Meskis was in the distinct minority about the sign, saying: "Everybody Loves it. Everybody's taking pictures of it."
And indeed, Sucher found plenty of support on Twitter, agreeing he was merely expressing his right to free speech, and Meskis was the one assaulting him.
But plenty came out to speak in support of Meksis as well, condemning the hurtful rhetoric posted on the sign, which Sucher has yet to removed from his store.
Notable among those taking to Twitter to support Meskis was Academy Award winning actress Patricia Arquette.
Another Twitter follower responded to Arquette, claiming that Meskis confronted Sucher and Arquette's support should be with him.
But Arquette stood by the elected Councilwoman, claiming:
"I don't want any kid seeing a discriminatory sign like that in the window of any store."
Meskis had announced plans to hold a rally outside of Sucher's store, and Sucher planned to counter her rally with supporters of his own, but the rally did not materialize.
