GOLD BAR, WA. – (KGMI.com) A Snohomish County store clerk’s shirt is sparking controversy and concern in a small riverside community.

KIRO-7 reports photos of a cashier at Gold Bar Family Grocer appeared on social media showing the man wearing a KKK shirt while carrying what appears to be a handgun in a holster.

The shirt has a depiction of a hooded Klan member surrounded by the words “I’m dreaming of a white Christmas. Knights of the Ku Klux Klan.”

Gold Bar resident Lynne Kelly says the attire makes her very uncomfortable.

“The world is a scary place right now,” said Kelly. “And Gold Bar should be a safe place for those of us who live here.”

But another resident says it is just free speech.

“Didn’t everybody fight for our free speech and be able to do whatever we want here?”

Seattle University professor Caitlin Carlson says the KKK is a hate group and the messaging on the shirt is hate speech.

But she says it is still protected by the First Amendment.

The manager of Family Grocer in Gold Bar says they do not condone their employee’s actions but other than that they said they have “no comment.”