ATLANTA, GA -- An East Atlanta gym is punching way above its weight in attention after its owner posted a sign on the front door that used an expletive in banning law enforcement. EAV Barbell Club on Flat Shoals Avenue on the city's southeast side had a sign that said "No [expletive] Cops" until owner Jim Chambers took it down. But Chamber said that the sign is going back up.

Chambers told local media that the sign is down only temporarily and that it will be put back up with one change only. (SIGN UP: Get Patch's Daily Newsletter and Real Time News Alerts. Or, if you have an iPhone, download the free Patch app.) He is removing the curse word. "It was really just that the vulgarity in that sign, and that seems to bring it out for people," Chambers told WXIA-TV, who broke the story. The owner, a longtime political activist, said that members of the military can't come to his gym either.

But now a police officer who lives in nearby Fayetteville wants Chambers to put his money, or at least his motto, where his mouth is. Police Officer Tommy Lefever sent WXIA an email recently, saying that he'd like to challenge Chambers to a boxing match. East Atlanta Patch "He seems like he might enjoy getting the opportunity to punch a cop in the face and I'd be happy to oblige him and give him that opportunity," Lefever told the TV station. He did not reveal which police department he is affiliated with.



One of the reasons that Chambers has cited for banning law enforcement from his facility is that his gym is frequented by many minorities, people who have had a hard time with the establishment. Lefever feels that a good ol' slug fest could help mend fixes a little bit. "Gaining mutual respect for one another in the boxing ring might be the start of something that can help overcome differences in world view, ideology, what have you," he was quoted as saying.



While we don't know what will happen, it seems the ball -- or at least the boxing glove -- is in Chambers' court (or in this case, gym).