An Applebee?s chain in Independence, MO has come under fire for an incident of racial profiling incident involving two Black women.
[FLASHBACK: Atlanta’s Houston’s Restaurant Accused of Racial Profiling… ]
A young lady by the name of Alexis Brison posted shared details of her disturbing experience on Facebook recently stating in part:
About an hour into our dinner we were approached by a [sic] Independence police officer, a mall cop, and the restaurant manager.
We were told that we were accused of eating and not paying for CHICKEN the day before (dining and dashing). Mind you that we have proof that can show our whereabouts and it?s not even in our character to steal.
The video attached to Brison’s post quickly drew outrage and the popular restaurant chain responded promptly.
Details + video below…
Brison posted the disturbing video above along with the following caption:
Three Applebee?s employees in Independence, MO have now been fired following the release of the footage that shows the young women being harassed by several White staffers who have been accused of racially profiling Black customers.
Brison says she and her dining companion were asked to pay for their food, leave, and not come back after being mocked and humiliated by the restaurant staff, mall security and a police officer.
The ladies can be heard yelling and crying off camera and the police officer smirks and condescendingly asks why they are so upset.
?Just because we are Black does not mean we are all criminals and I will not be treated as such,? stated Brison in her Facebook post.
[FLASHBACK: Racial Profiling: Old Navy Employees Accuse Black Man of Stealing Coat He Was Wearing… (VIDEO)]
Following the intense public backlash and calls to boycott, Applebee?s issued the following statement:
We recognize the hurt and pain caused by the recent incident at an Applebee?s restaurant in Independence, Mo. We very much regret this occurred and sincerely apologize to our guests and community.
After an internal investigation and in-line with our values, the franchisee terminated the manager, server and another employee involved in the incident.
We do not tolerate racism, bigotry or harassment of any nature, and we have taken additional steps to close the restaurant at this time in order for the team there to regroup, reflect, learn and grow from this.
We are reaching out to the guests involved to apologize directly. We know rebuilding trust with those affected by the incident will take time, and we look forward to finding resolution in the coming days.