Cracker Barrel Being Sued for Racism
Posted: Wed Oct 18, 2006 12:35 pm
The Rev. Al Sharpton is due in South Carolina today to stand up for comic Chris Rock's mama.
Rose Rock, who helped inspire Rock's sitcom, "Everybody Hates Chris," has called in the Rev to demonstrate outside a Cracker Barrel restaurant where she alleges staffers ignored her.
Mrs. Rock says that, for more than 30 minutes after she and her 21-year-old daughter sat down at a Cracker Barrel in Murrells Inlet, S.C., in April, no one would take their order. She says they were the only black customers.
After she complained about the wait, she says, the manager offered to comp their meals, but by then, "neither of us wanted to eat."
"He never called over the waitresses and asked, 'Why did these people sit here for an hour without service?'" says Rose.
Rock later brought her complaint to the South Carolina Human Affairs Commission, but Sharpton tells us, "No one got back to her."
Sharpton says he'll announce today that his National Action Network plans to finance Rose's lawsuit against the chain and seek class-action status.
Cracker Barrel, established in 1969, operates 547 restaurants in 41 states.
"We've heard similar stories from all over the country," says Sharpton. "Is there a systemic problem with Cracker Barrel like there was at Denny's?" In the early 1990s, Denny's settled a class-action lawsuit for $54.4 million and launched a racial sensitivity training program. Black Enterprise magazine recently named it one of America's 40 most diverse companies.
A Cracker Barrel spokeswoman told us: "I can assure you that we're investigating the matter. We do not tolerate any form of discrimination. ... If employees don't follow rules, they don't get promotions or bonuses."
South Carolina Human Affairs Commission head Jesse Washington says his agency is also investigating.
In May 2004, Cracker Barrel settled a civil-rights lawsuit brought by the U.S. Justice Department on behalf of black customers who said they were made to wait longer for tables, segregated from white patrons when seated and often given inferior service. Cracker Barrel admitted no wrongdoing but agreed to set up a plan to deal with the allegations.
Chris Rock had no comment yesterday. Sharpton agreed that the comedian's mother's Cracker Barrel case "almost sounds like one of Chris' routines, it's so surreal. But, unfortunately, it's very real."
From The New York Daily News
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I find this story interesting as I've heard of this sort of thing at these restaurants before. The claims have evidently been substantiated in the past. While I've never eaten at this Cracker Barrel, I have seen blacks being given obviously inferior service at restaurants in the Myrtle Beach area.
Rose Rock, who helped inspire Rock's sitcom, "Everybody Hates Chris," has called in the Rev to demonstrate outside a Cracker Barrel restaurant where she alleges staffers ignored her.
Mrs. Rock says that, for more than 30 minutes after she and her 21-year-old daughter sat down at a Cracker Barrel in Murrells Inlet, S.C., in April, no one would take their order. She says they were the only black customers.
After she complained about the wait, she says, the manager offered to comp their meals, but by then, "neither of us wanted to eat."
"He never called over the waitresses and asked, 'Why did these people sit here for an hour without service?'" says Rose.
Rock later brought her complaint to the South Carolina Human Affairs Commission, but Sharpton tells us, "No one got back to her."
Sharpton says he'll announce today that his National Action Network plans to finance Rose's lawsuit against the chain and seek class-action status.
Cracker Barrel, established in 1969, operates 547 restaurants in 41 states.
"We've heard similar stories from all over the country," says Sharpton. "Is there a systemic problem with Cracker Barrel like there was at Denny's?" In the early 1990s, Denny's settled a class-action lawsuit for $54.4 million and launched a racial sensitivity training program. Black Enterprise magazine recently named it one of America's 40 most diverse companies.
A Cracker Barrel spokeswoman told us: "I can assure you that we're investigating the matter. We do not tolerate any form of discrimination. ... If employees don't follow rules, they don't get promotions or bonuses."
South Carolina Human Affairs Commission head Jesse Washington says his agency is also investigating.
In May 2004, Cracker Barrel settled a civil-rights lawsuit brought by the U.S. Justice Department on behalf of black customers who said they were made to wait longer for tables, segregated from white patrons when seated and often given inferior service. Cracker Barrel admitted no wrongdoing but agreed to set up a plan to deal with the allegations.
Chris Rock had no comment yesterday. Sharpton agreed that the comedian's mother's Cracker Barrel case "almost sounds like one of Chris' routines, it's so surreal. But, unfortunately, it's very real."
From The New York Daily News
_____________________________________________________________
I find this story interesting as I've heard of this sort of thing at these restaurants before. The claims have evidently been substantiated in the past. While I've never eaten at this Cracker Barrel, I have seen blacks being given obviously inferior service at restaurants in the Myrtle Beach area.
