Seems to me that we are missing important information. I think it matters how the two were behaving.
If they were just shopping the mall and happened to be wearing the t-shirts, then I think that action to remove them would be outrageous. OTOH, if they were strutting their message around the mall looking for a reaction, I can see how they might be perceived as provoking a disturbance.
I imagine that the latter was the case. If they bought the shirts there are were asked to remove them, then they were probably wearing them over whatever clothes they came in, which means they were wearing them looking for a reaction. If they, in the interests of getting a reaction, pumped their chests and stuck their messages in people's faces, then they were being intentionally provocative.
Nonetheless, it's interesting that the messages should be perceived as offensive, even if accompanied by provocative behavior. Would a message that, say, Michael Jackson is the greatest or Michael Jackson is wacko, accompanied by equivalent behavior on the part of the wearers, have produced the same result? |
