Posted on 04/15/2017 11:39:22 AM PDT by nickcarraway
An African-American woman filed a civil rights lawsuit Monday, April 10, against Albertsons and its parent company, Safeway, alleging that its managers took no steps to correct or apologize for the actions of a checkout clerk at an Irvine store who incorrectly assumed the woman was on food stamps.
Jenna Watkinson, a spokeswoman for Safeway, said company officials have not seen the lawsuit and “do not comment on pending litigation.”
“However, any time we interact with a customer, our goal is to ensure that they are treated with the utmost respect and courtesy,” she said Wednesday.
Deirdre Harris, 42, who filed the lawsuit, said the incident occurred Jan. 27 at the Albertsons at Alton Avenue and Culver Street. Harris said she was trying to pull out a debit card from her phone case to pay for the items, when the checkout clerk asked her if she wanted to use her EBT card.
“What exactly did you say?” Harris asked the clerk.
The clerk repeated her question and asked if she wanted to use food stamps.
“I felt completely demoralized,” said Harris, an Orange County native who grew up in Huntington Beach, works as a fashion brand consultant, and has lived in Irvine for 22 years. “For me, it was a very clear reminder — a painful reminder — that we do not live in a post-racial era.”
(Excerpt) Read more at mercurynews.com ...
Tired, schmired. She asked the clerk twice. If it was an error, a non-brain dead person wouldn't have doubled-down.
She said it twice because she was asked to repeat it the second time or didn’t you read that? And what difference does that make?
Do you often deliver lectures to people who make 7 bucks an hour?
Good to know. Do you feel the same way about the United guy? Or is that different because he was physically attacked?
Perpetual victimhood.
Interesting post. I must say I’m astonished at how so many people here think what the clerk said was horrible. To me, she made a mistake. But then I like grocery clerks. I always have good relationships with them and for the most part they are hard workers in a job that, unfortunately, gets very little respect.
The customer should have moved on but when you’re African American, the chip is always on the shoulder.
My point is that if she only misspoke because she was tired, she should have caught her error and rephrased it. I can't believe I even have to explain that.
Irvine is HARDLY white. I would not be surprised if there are more Asians than whites.
But Yorba Linda, you’re right about that. It’s f’ing Mayberry. And pretty nice, too. Though I actually prefer a town with more of a mix as long as everyone is “civilized” ( no gang/animal behavior).
Not sure whether the lawyer or the reporter is the idiot that got it wrong.
” against Albertsons and its parent company, Safeway,”
Albertson’s owns Safeway, not the other way around.
If it’s the lawyer, the hearing on the motion to dismiss should be fun.
Should we assume then that all wally world shoppers can sue walmart for demanding to see your receipt and shuffling through your bags in order for you to leave the store ? Profiling all their shoppers as criminals
Also, if I were going to steal a small item from Frys, why would I put it in the bag?? Along the line of reasoning they aren’t even catching the thieves. They should search purses, pockets, and body cavities at the door, or what they are doing is useless!
You have to explain it because you neglected to mention the woman was demanding she repeat it. That, too, is a part of the story because the woman on the “receiving end” of such a terrible insult was clearly looking for trouble. I mean, unless you live in a lily-white area of the country and never have to deal with angry black women like the rest of us do.
I tend to leave people who have what I consider lousy jobs alone. That’s because in my past life, I have had lousy jobs and know a thing or two about customer abuse.
Everybody sues for anything now. One day soon you will read where someone sues the sun for shinning or not shinning at a particular time.
The single greatest example of cultural appropriation in the U.S. today. They’re no more African than I am Scottish. Sure its in the background, but its been 300 years— give it a rest.
On the other hand, grocery checkout clerks aren’t brain surgeons. Suing Safeway just speeds up the move to automation. I already use InstaCart for my deliveries from Publix and TotalWine. I spend less than I would if I visited the store and they dont get a shot at upselling me to a higher margin product. I have a shopping list, it gets entered, they deliver. Anything unusual I go to ethnic grocers.
The more lawsuits like this happens the more corporations will be incentivized to put technology between people at the transactional level.
Well, when you’re a third generation non-Spanish speaking US Air Force veteran firefighter who your poor tired clerk presumes is a welfare recipient because of the color of his skin, come back and talk to me.
Instead of writing to me, surely you can find some needy low-level employee in need of a lecture. It’s only 4 o’clock my way.
Being asked a rude question and physically being dragged out of a jet would seem to be on two different levels.... Considering he was allso injured as a result...
United will pay to make it go away, since everyone on the planet has seen the video....
I’m not a lawyer or even played one on TV but I don’t see what reason United could win on...even if they are legally in their rights....
I know some upper management in Walmart and they are threatened to get sued over 10,000 times a year for slip and falls claims...99 % of them go away when Walmart shows them the security video of them laying down on the floor next to a wet spot and claiming they fell... Or they get up and walk away uninjured
It was you who commented on my post, not me to you. If you don’t want me replying to you, resist the impulse to comment on my posts. Thanks.
I prefer a mix, too. Grew up in very white Denver, then 40 years in San Diego, now retired to lily white Maine and do I ever miss the mix.
Love the hispanic community and was duly insulted when cashiiers would assume I spoke Spanish, but never would I have made a big deal of it. The look on their face when I surprised them, speaking Enlish, was enough.
The most respectful I met were young hispanic males, who revere their mums. The least respectful are teenage hispanic girls. By far. Especially driving.
If that makes me prejudiced, so be it. I did LOVE watching hispanic family picnics and miss it very much.
Legal immigrants are a treasure.
Yep. Unhappy and miserable. If asked that question, my reply would have been,”I sure would. If I had one.”
But does she now have or ever had an EBT card? I didn’t see that fact in the article.
Some of the Albertson’s stores were bought by Haagen but most of them were kept when they acquired Von’s and Safeway, the sale required that the company could not have Albertsons and Von’s or Safeway within so many miles of each other thus the sale of some of the Albertsons stores!!!
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