I never thought I'd have to write something like this. But I also never thought I'd be treated like I didn't matter--just for being Deaf, autistic, and asking to be included. Back in the spring, I was a member at UFC Gym Waterfront. As someone who works hard to stay healthy despite sensory issues, trauma, and barriers, going to the gym was supposed to be a healing place. But instead of strength, I left feeling invisible. I had asked for something simple: a reasonable accommodation--a legal right, not a favor. I was trying to report a staff member who had treated me in a way that felt harassing and unsafe. But because the gym was switching managers, the new manager said "there was nothing he could do." He said he had reviewed the footage--but couldn't even tell me what date it happened. I felt like my experience just... disappeared. And when I tried to close my account quietly and respectfully, the hurt only got worse. I was mocked for using AVA, a captioning app I rely on to communicate. The manager made a comment about me having "selective hearing"--a cruel stereotype that cuts deep for Deaf people. I left in tears. Let me say this clearly: Deafness is not selective. I live with medically documented hearing loss. I don't "choose" when I can hear you. What I choose is to keep showing up in a world that wasn't built for me, asking--sometimes begging--to be understood. Eventually, after trying to handle it privately, I shared an honest review of my experience--because I didn't want someone else to go through what I did. That review was protected under the Consumer Review Fairness Act (15 U.S.C. §45b). But instead of accountability, I was banned from the gym. Just for speaking my truth. That kind of retaliation is illegal. Under 42 U.S.C. § 12203, it is against the law to punish someone for asserting their disability rights. And under Title III of the Americans with Disabilities Act (42 U.S.C. § 12182), public businesses must provide reasonable accommodations. They cannot punish someone for asking to be included. But what hurts the most isn't just the law being broken--it's the message sent to disabled people: You don't belong here. I'm not sharing this to get sympathy. I'm sharing it because so many of us are afraid to speak up. We're afraid of being labeled "difficult," "too much," or "a liability." But I believe we deserve better. We deserve access. We deserve safety. We deserve compassion. We deserve to walk into a gym--or anywhere--and not feel like we have to hide who we are just to be allowed through the door. To UFC Gym Waterfront: I hope this reaches your heart, not just your policies. I hope the next disabled person who walks in gets what I never did: dignity, respect, and a real chance to belong. Because civil rights aren't radical. They're human. With grace, grit, and a little legal sparkle, hey Joe, you call kindness weakness-because you've never had the strength to try it. read more

My Experience at UFC Gym Waterfront -- Why I'm Speaking Out Back in the spring, I had an extremely upsetting and painful experience at UFC Gym Waterfront--one that I believe involved both disability-based discrimination and retaliation in violation of federal civil rights laws. As a Deaf and autistic person, I requested a reasonable accommodation to ensure equal access. Instead of receiving support, I found myself reporting harassment by a staff member--only to be brushed off and invalidated. The gym was in the middle of a managerial transition, so I brought my concerns to the newly assigned manager. He told me there was "nothing he could do" because he hadn't been there when it happened. When I asked about surveillance footage, he said he had "watched the video" but couldn't even give me the date of the recording. That alone made me feel like I didn't matter. But it got worse. When I tried to close my account, I was mocked--right to my face. The manager criticized my use of the AVA app (a captioning tool I depend on as a Deaf person), and said I had "selective hearing," a deeply ignorant and harmful stereotype. Then, when I posted a truthful review about my experience--protected under the Consumer Review Fairness Act of 2016 (15 U.S.C. §45b)--I was banned from the gym. In response, the manager defended his staff member by claiming the employee who screamed at me was autistic--as if that excused the behavior or made my experience any less valid. Let me be clear: Deafness is not "selective." It is a real, medically documented disability. And being autistic--something I also live with--does not give anyone the right to be abusive, especially toward another disabled person. These aren't excuses. They are reminders of why training in disability competency and communication access is so essential in public-facing spaces like gyms. Retaliation for asserting your rights is illegal under 42 U.S.C. §12203 of the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA). Under Title III of the ADA (42 U.S.C. §12182), businesses are required to provide reasonable accommodations and cannot punish anyone--disabled or not--for speaking up. I'm not writing this for sympathy. I'm writing this because others--especially those with disabilities--need to know they are not alone. We deserve dignity. We deserve safety. And we deserve to be believed. I sincerely hope UFC Gym Waterfront takes this seriously and invests in staff training, especially during times of transition. No one else should ever have to go through what I did simply for asserting their rights. read more

Back in the spring, I had an extremely upsetting and painful experience at UFC Gym Waterfront--one that I believe involved both discrimination and retaliation in violation of federal civil rights laws. As a Deaf and autistic person, I had requested a reasonable accommodation to help ensure equal access. Instead of receiving support, I found myself trying to report harassment by a staff member, only to be brushed off and invalidated. The gym was in the middle of a managerial transition, so I did my best to direct my concerns to the new manager. But he told me there was "nothing he could do" because he hadn't been there at the time. When I asked about surveillance footage, he said he had "watched the video" but couldn't even give me the date of the incident. That alone made me feel like I didn't matter. What made it worse was how I was treated personally. I was mocked while trying to close my account. The manager even criticized my use of the AVA app--a captioning tool I rely on for communication--and accused me of having "selective hearing," a deeply ignorant and harmful stereotype about Deaf people. So let me be clear: Deafness is not "selective." We have real, medically documented hearing loss. Communication access isn't a favor; it's a civil right. Dismissing that right--let alone mocking it--does real harm to people like me every day. After trying to handle things privately, I eventually posted a truthful review about what happened--an act protected under the Consumer Review Fairness Act of 2016 (15 U.S.C. §45b). Soon after, I was banned from the gym. That decision felt retaliatory and punitive--especially considering my only "offense" was speaking up. Retaliation for asserting disability rights is illegal under 42 U.S.C. §12203 of the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA). And under Title III of the ADA (42 U.S.C. §12182), public businesses are required to offer reasonable accommodations--and cannot punish someone simply for asking for them. I'm not sharing this for sympathy--I'm sharing it so that others, especially those with disabilities, know they're not alone. We deserve dignity. We deserve access. And we deserve to be treated like human beings. I truly hope UFC Gym Waterfront reflects on this, improves its staff training, and builds a safer, more respectful environment--especially during times of internal transition. No one else should ever be treated the way I was. read more

It wasn't raining that day, but it might as well have been. The air inside the gym felt heavy--like something had already passed through and left the room hollow. I walked in with the simple intention of using the facility. I was visiting the area for the holidays and thought a quick workout would help me clear my head. Instead, I found myself witnessing something I'll never forget. The manager--a bald man with the kind of smug composure that only comes from knowing no one ever holds you accountable--was confronting a disabled woman near the front desk. She had apparently written a negative review, and rather than speak with her professionally, he cornered her with condescension and dismissiveness. She was calm. Respectful. But visibly shaken. As she turned to leave, she broke down in tears. Instead of compassion, the manager escalated the situation by threatening to call the police--on a disabled customer. The implication was clear: if you speak up, we'll silence you. At one point, he even defended his behavior by saying the staff member involved was autistic too. As if that somehow justified intimidating another autistic person. It doesn't. Disability doesn't excuse abuse. It doesn't cancel out the harm being done. What I saw wasn't a miscommunication--it felt retaliatory. The kind of quiet retaliation that disabled people face all the time when they ask for dignity in spaces that were never built with them in mind. Under the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA), public businesses are required to provide reasonable accommodations (42 U.S.C. § 12182) and are prohibited from retaliating when someone asserts their rights (42 U.S.C. § 12203). I'm not a lawyer, but I've seen enough in my life to know when someone's being made an example of for daring to speak. I left without using the gym. I couldn't be part of a place where that kind of behavior comes from the person in charge. Because when a manager uses their authority to intimidate the vulnerable, they're not leading. They're reminding us how easy it still is to get punished for telling the truth. And one day, someone's going to drag that silence into the light. You mock kindness because it convicts you. Cruelty is your shield--not because you're strong, but because you're too weak to feel anything else. read more

Just Because You Wear a Name Tag Doesn't Mean You Get to Abuse People Let me be perfectly clear: what I witnessed at UFC Gym Waterfront in Homestead, PA was not a "miscommunication." It was blatant harassment. Full stop. I was visiting the area over the holidays and stopped by the gym to check it out. I wasn't looking to join--just thought a day pass might do me some good. What I walked into instead? Absolutely horrifying. The manager--bald, loud, and clearly drunk on his own authority--was publicly berating a disabled woman at the front desk. She had written a negative review, which is fully legal and protected under the Consumer Review Fairness Act (15 U.S.C. §45b). But rather than respond like a professional, he humiliated her. Mocked her. Threatened her. She was trying to advocate for herself--calmly and respectfully--and he responded with outright cruelty. She was Deaf and autistic. She used a captioning app to communicate. And he mocked that, too. Then, as she walked away--shaking and in tears--he threatened to call the police on her. Why? Because she had the audacity to tell the truth about how she'd been treated. That's not "bad customer service." That's abuse. Even worse, when someone (me) challenged what was happening, he defended himself by saying the employee she reviewed was autistic too--as if that gave him a free pass to intimidate another disabled person. It doesn't. It never has. And under Title III of the Americans with Disabilities Act (42 U.S.C. § 12182), public businesses are required to treat disabled patrons with respect, accommodate their needs, and not retaliate when they speak up (42 U.S.C. § 12203). This woman wasn't aggressive. She wasn't yelling. She was crying. And I stood there, horrified, realizing I had just witnessed a disabled woman being publicly abused by someone in power. I encouraged her to file a formal complaint. And now, I'm writing this review because that kind of behavior should never go unanswered. UFC Gym Waterfront didn't just lose my business--they lost my respect. And if they're smart, they'll lose Joe, too. Because power used to silence the vulnerable is not leadership. It's cowardice. And I don't care how many push-ups you can do. If you need to humiliate disabled women to feel strong, you're weak. read more

Community Awareness Post -- UFC Gym Waterfront, Homestead PA Be warned about abusive person JOSEPH TOMASZEWSKI. As a disability rights advocate, I feel obligated to share concerns about the treatment of disabled individuals--including Deaf members and veterans with disabilities--at the UFC Gym Waterfront in Homestead, PA. In my experience and from what others have privately expressed, there is a disturbing pattern of disregard toward people with disabilities. Some members have shared that they're afraid to speak up for fear of losing their memberships or facing retaliation. I am posting this to raise awareness--not to spread hate, but to protect vulnerable individuals and advocate for equal access, dignity, and respect in fitness spaces. Businesses open to the public, including gyms, have legal obligations under the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) and similar state protections to accommodate disabled patrons and treat them fairly. Publicly listed staff and trainers at this location are attached below, as available on social media and business cards shared with the public. This is not personal. It's about principle--and protecting the people who are often too afraid to speak for themselves. Know your rights. Stay safe. And speak up when you can. The people here enjoy abusing those with disabilities read more