A security guard at the Contemporary Jewish Museum in San Francisco tried to remove a lesbian couple for holding hands at an exhibit for lesbian artist Gertrude Stein on Sunday, according to an eyewitness.

The San Francisco Chronicle reported that after the guard told the couple they couldn’t hold hands in the museum, the two women started an argument with him. After a small crowd began to form around them, the guard attempted to escort the couple out the door.

ADVERTISEMENT

“And they said, ‘No we are not leaving and we want to talk to somebody in authority right now,’ ” an eyewitness explained. “The idea that in 2011, in San Francisco, at the Jewish Museum, this guard could be that out of touch was shocking.”

A museum spokeswoman said the guard works for a private security company and they have asked for him to be reprimanded.

The two women later met with the head of security, who issued a verbal apology to the couple.