A British shopper was shocked to find Black skincare products were security tagged, meanwhile more expensive skincare products for white skin appeared to be untagged at a Tesco store in Essex, UK. The video garnered thousands of views in just one day, with comments denouncing the store as “racist,” while others claimed the decision was “data-driven.” The supermarket has since apologized for the security locks, adding that the products “should clearly not have been security tagged in this way” and that they have been removed.
In 2018, a California woman sued Walmart in federal court for discrimination over the policy, saying she felt humiliated having to ask a store employee to unlock the beauty products case on three visits to the store, including to buy a comb that cost $0.48.
The woman, Essie Grundy, said she went to a Walmart in Perris, Calif., in Riverside County to buy body lotion by the beauty brand Cantu when she noticed that all of the products “targeted at African-Americans” were locked in a glass case, “from the middle of the aisle to the end.”
Ms. Grundy, who was represented by the lawyer Gloria Allred, dropped the lawsuit in November, court documents show.
Reached on Wednesday night, Ms. Allred would not say if there was a settlement in the case, which was voluntarily dismissed with prejudice — meaning it cannot be brought back before the court. She said that “the matter was resolved.”
Walmart did not comment on the resolution of the lawsuit.
Ms. Grundy declined to comment on the policy change.
CVS and Walgreens have also faced criticism for locking up skincare products sold to black people.
A Walgreens spokeswoman wrote in an email on Thursday that the company was also discontinuing that practice.
“We are currently ensuring multicultural hair care and skincare products are not stored behind locked cases at any of our stores, which has been the case at a limited number of our stores,” the spokeswoman, Emily Hartwig-Mekstan, wrote.
CVS did not immediately respond to requests for comment on Wednesday night.
Fresh allegations of racist abuse and slurs being used at a BYU athletic event have emerged, a month after similar claims involving the Duke volleyball team.
Five women’s soccer players from a visiting team told the Guardian they heard the N-word being directed at them and their teammates from the crowd during a game at BYU in 2021. Players had knelt for the national anthem to protest racial and social injustice when they say they heard shouts from the crowd.
“I just remember that there was like a consistent chant of ‘stand up, N-words’ during the anthem and right after,” one of the players told the Guardian. “And when brought to the attention of the BYU coaching staff there was no real response or sense of, like, alarm.”
She added: “I felt disappointed but not surprised. Backlash for kneeling was not new for our group but to hear that in person was shocking. I think both the fans and coaching staff knew we wouldn’t cancel the game after the incident, which once again shows this could be part of a bigger cultural issue within BYU as an institution.”
Four of her teammates independently confirmed to the Guardian that they also heard the chants.
A sixth member of the team did not hear the chants but says the BYU coach was told about them. The coach “seemed shocked and did ask” that “another announcement be made about how fans should behave”. The sixth team member said that an announcement warning fans about their behavior was then made but “nothing else was done to my knowledge”. Because players on the visiting team “wanted to continue with the game”, it went ahead.
The allegations come a month after another claim of racism involving a crowd at BYU. In August a Duke volleyball player, Rachel Richardson, said she had been subjected to racist abuse and slurs during a match at BYU and that officials did not react quickly enough when the abuse was reported.
Al Jazeera reveals how the Labour party created a hierarchy of racism that discriminated against Black, Asian and Muslim members.
Al Jazeera’s Investigative Unit (I-Unit) reveals how a British political party that claims to embrace progressive values created a hierarchy of racism that discriminated against its Black, Asian and Muslim members. Interviews, internal documents and social media messages shared by the most senior staff in The United Kingdom’s Labour betrayed a racist culture where abuse was aimed at their own colleagues, councillors and political leaders.
The Labour Files, an I-Unit investigation based on 500 gigabytes of documents, emails, video and audio files from the Party dating from 1998 to 2021, exposes how the party’s campaign to present a tough image of anti-Semitism, while ignoring other forms of discrimination, drove many staff to resign.
The Party is a political party in the United Kingdom that has been described as an alliance of social democrats, democratic socialists, and trade unionists. The Party sits on the centre-left of the political spectrum. In all general elections since 1922, Labour has been either the governing party or the Official Opposition. There have been six Labour prime ministers and thirteen Labour ministries. The party holds the annual Party Conference, at which party policy is formulated.
The Party currently forms the Official Opposition in the Parliament of the United Kingdom, having won the second-largest number of seats in the 2019 general election. The leader of the party and leader of the opposition is Keir Starmer. Labour is the largest party in the Senedd (Welsh Parliament), being the only party in the current Welsh government.
The party is the third-largest in the Scottish Parliament, behind the Scottish National Party and the Scottish Conservatives. Labour is a member of the Party of European Socialists and Progressive Alliance, and holds observer status in the Socialist International. The party includes semi-autonomous London, Scottish, Welsh and Northern Irish branches, however it supports the Social Democratic and Labour Party (SDLP) in Northern Ireland, while still organising there. As of July 2022, Labour has around 415,000 registered members. one of the largest memberships of any party in Europe.
The Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR), the nation’s largest Muslim civil rights and advocacy organization, today called for the resignation of a North Carolina sheriff following the revelation of the racist statement he allegedly made.
CAIR also welcomed an investigation by the North Carolina State Bureau of Investigation (SBI) into the racist comments allegedly made by the sheriff of that state’s Columbus County.
The racist comments were reportedly made in a 2019 phone conversation between Columbus County Sheriff Jody Greene and Captain Jason Soles, who had been given command of the department while a complaint against Greene was being investigated. Greene reportedly told Soles he was “sick of these black b**tards.” He also said he would fire employees who he believed related to an investigation into his eligibility for the office. The call was one of several Greene made to Soles during the investigation.
The Columbus County Attorney General said that while he was unsure if Greene’s comments reached the level of a criminal violation, they did raise concerns about biased policing by the department.
Yesterday, the attorney general requested the North Carolina Bureau of Investigation (SBI) begin investigating the issue. In a statement posted to Facebook, Greene admitted to using offensive language but denied any “racial intent.”
“The comments reportedly made by the sheriff are appalling and would indicate that he is unfit to serve and protect a diverse community,” said CAIR National Communications Director Ibrahim Hooper. “We urge the North Carolina SBI to be swift and thorough in its investigation and for the sheriff to consider resigning from his office.”
He said CAIR and the American Muslim community stand in solidarity with all those challenging antisemitism, systemic anti-Black racism, xenophobia, Islamophobia, white supremacy, and all other forms of bigotry.
CAIR’s mission is to protect civil rights, enhance understanding of Islam, promote justice, and empower American Muslims.
Rio Ferdinand has called on football’s authorities to do more to combat racism, noting that Richarlison having a banana thrown at him prompted a similar level of “vitriol” to his showboating at Nottingham Forest last month.
A banana was thrown in the forward’s direction after he scored in the 19th minute of a 5-1 friendly win over Tunisia at the Parc des Princes in Paris on Tuesday.
Footage showed Manchester United midfielder Fred kicking the banana away, with Richarlison later insisting racism will continue “every day and everywhere” until sufficient punishment is handed out.
Ex-England defender Ferdinand offered his support to the Tottenham striker, who was the subject of much debate last month over an incident at the end of Spurs’ win away to Forest.
Richarlison started to showboat and do kick-ups, leading Brennan Johnson to clatter into the forward, while opposition boss Steve Cooper was critical of the Brazilian’s conduct, which sparked a social media storm.
Rio Ferdinand said on his FIVE YouTube channel: “I’m not saying football can change or cure racism because I would be an idiot to think that.
“Football can play a good part in highlighting issues and standing together, standing strong and standing unified to make the authorities and powers that be put things in place to protect people, but it ain’t happening. It’s disheartening.
“You’ve got your own kids waking up and saying: ‘Dad, have you seen that banana thrown on the pitch at Richarlison?’ It’s madness.
Richarlison, who spoke out in support of international colleague Vinicius Jr earlier this month after the Real Madrid player suffered racism, said in a post translated from Portuguese on Twitter: “As long as they stay ‘blah blah blah’ and don’t punish, it’s going to continue like this, happening every day and everywhere. No time bro!”
Prior to the game, five-time world champions, Brazil had posed for photographs with an anti-racism banner that read: “Without our black players, we wouldn’t have stars on our shirts.”
Kick It Out’s Troy Townsend questioned the reaction of FIFA following the incident.
Looks like the unfavorable response to the new ‘Little Mermaid’ trailer featuring the black actress Halle Bailey did not surprise Tituss Burgess.
Reports that Tituss Burgess spoke to them at the ‘Hocus Pocus 2’ premiere and said, “You know what? I’m not surprised by anything. We live in America!”
Burgess added, “It’s a very racist country, it’s a very narrow-minded country, full of mental illness and people who cannot see the forest from the trees.”
Burgess concluded by saying, “The movie is not made for them; it’s made for people with open minds.”
According to to report, the live-action adaptation of the beloved Disney cartoon’s trailer received roughly 14 million views and more than six-million hits on the ‘like’ button in the days following its release earlier this month, but YouTube apparently had to disable ‘dislike button’ after receiving 1.5 million thumbs-downs.
However, the upcoming movie also earned a lot of love, as a lot of young girls took over social media to show their appreciation as they discovered that Ariel “just looked like” them.
Earlier this month, the first look of the live-action adaptation of ‘The Little Mermaid’, starring Halle Bailey was unveiled by Disney at the D23 Expo.
Soon, Halle shared the reactions of people after the teaser release.
The movie is based on Disney’s 1989 animated classic, which was itself based on a fairy tale by Hans Christian Andersen. The story centers on the mermaid princess Ariel, who makes a Faustian bargain with the sea witch Ursala to become human and win the love of a prince.
Clements and John Musker wrote and directed the original film, which became an instant classic upon its release, grossing over USD 211M worldwide and winning Academy Awards for Best Music, Original Score, and Best Music, Original Song, along with two Golden Globes, a Grammy, and other accolades reported.
A victim has filed a lawsuit against the lady who was caught on camera making racist statements to a group of Indian Americans outside a restaurant in Plano, Texas, last month.
The event, which was captured on a now-viral video, happened on August 24 at about 8:15 p.m. in the parking lot of the restaurant Sixty Vines on the 3700 block of Dallas Parkway.
The culprit, subsequently identified as Esmeralda Upton, approached the group of four Indian Americans as they were making their way to their automobiles after dinner and said, “Go back to India.”
She may also be seen hitting the individual who is recording the situation on the video at one point. She then tells the victim she would “blow your f*cking brains out” as she reaches for her handbag.
That evening, when Plano police came, they let Upton go. She was, however, taken into custody the next day on suspicion of assault and threatening terrorism. Following her arrest, she posted the $10,000 bail that was required for her to be detained in custody.
Dr. Bidisha Rudra, one of the four victims, filed a civil lawsuit against Upton last week in Collin County seeking compensation and punitive damages.
Indian-born Rudra became a citizen of the United States through naturalization. She has more than 20 years of residency in the nation and earned her doctorate there. One of the greatest communities of Indian Americans in the country is found in North Texas.
Veronica S. Moyé, the attorney for Rudra, asserted that Upton must bear “severe penalties” for her crimes.
The Dallas Morning News quoted Moyé as saying, “We think there has to be substantial, serious consequences for Ms. Upton to convey a message that this sort of behavior will be dealt with in the harshest possible way.” Even if an apology would be great, it would not undo all the suffering that these ladies had endured.
Republicans have come under fire from Lt. Governor Mandela Barnes supporters for running racist television advertising and mailings during the U.S. Senate campaign.
Barnes, a Democrat running to be the state’s first Black senator, is in a close contest against Sen. Ron Johnson, a Republican.
Barnes’ supporters encouraged Republicans and conservative organizations to drop the contentious commercials during a press conference on Wednesday in front of a Republican Party headquarters on the city’s north side.
Calena Roberts, a field director for SEIU Wisconsin, stated, “We’re calling on Ron Johnson to reject these commercials and for national Republicans to take them down.” “We are not naive. We are aware of their activities.”
Johnson’s top advisor, Ben Voelkel, referred to the insults and the charge of racism as “absurd.” He claimed that the reason why his followers are now criticizing him is that they are unable to justify the “disastrous effects of their extreme left policies.”
They are unable to dispute Mandela Barnes’ radical leftist views, which are supported by other radical leftists and are very different from those of Wisconsin voters, according to Voelkel.
None of the commercials receiving flak were created or funded by the Johnson campaign.
During the 1988 presidential campaign, state senator Chris Larson (D-Milwaukee) compared a few of the commercials to the infamous Willie Horton spot.
In that election, George H.W. Bush’s backers ran a campaign commercial attacking his rival, former Massachusetts Governor Michael Dukakis, of being lax on crime while displaying a threatening mug image of Horton, a murderer who was placed on furlough while Dukakis was in power.
Additionally, Barnes’ supporters questioned a mailer sent by the state Republican Party, which darkened one side of the leaflet to include a photo of Barnes. The back side, which promotes Johnson’s campaign, is unfiltered.
Robert Sarver has announced plans to sell his two Phoenix-based basketball teams, the NBA’s Suns and Mercury.
“I am beginning the process of seeking buyers for the Suns and Mercury,” Sarver said in a statement on Wednesday.
Following an inquiry into claims of racism and sexism while serving as the owner of the Suns and Mercury, the NBA last Thursday fined Sarver $10 million and suspended him for a year. Many NBA players, including well-known athletes like LeBron James and Chris Paul, did not think the punishment was severe enough. When the sentence was issued, James posted on Twitter, saying, “Our league clearly got this wrong.” “I adore our league and have the utmost regard for our executive team. But this is wrong. Racism, sexism, and misogyny have no place in the workplace.
Jahm Najafi, the Suns’ vice chairman, and PayPal, a team sponsor, both recommended that Sarver sell the organization.
Last November, an ESPN article that was subsequently confirmed by an NBA investigation discovered that Sarver had used the N-word five times while paraphrasing the statements of others. This is when Sarver’s problems started. In addition, the study found that Sarver made offensive remarks about sex and anatomy, made sexist remarks toward female employees, including telling a pregnant worker that she wouldn’t be able to perform her job once she gave birth, and yelled and cursed at workers in ways that would be regarded as bullying “under workplace standards”. Sarver did not use “racially offensive language with the purpose to humiliate or disparage,” according to the report.
Sarver’s situation has been compared to that of former LA Clippers owner Donald Sterling. After recordings of Sterling uttering racial slurs surfaced in 2014, NBA commissioner Adam Silver essentially forced the sale of the franchise by banning Sterling for life from the league.
A US judge has mandated that McDonald’s Corp. defend itself in the $10 billion racism lawsuit filed by media mogul Byron Allen, who claims that the fast-food business engaged in “racial stereotyping” by refusing to advertise in black-owned media.
According to a ruling made on Friday by US district judge Fernando Olguin in Los Angeles, Allen may attempt to show in the racism lawsuit that McDonald’s broke federal and California civil rights laws by excluding his networks from receiving the “vast bulk” of its advertising funds.
In this racism lawsuit, Allen claimed that McDonald’s denied his Entertainment Studios Networks Inc. and Weather Group LLC, which owns the Weather Channel, tens of millions of dollars in annual income by placing them in an “African American tier” with a different advertising agency and a considerably lesser advertising budget.
Olguin referenced claims that Entertainment Studios had made many fruitless attempts since its creation in 2009 to get a contract with McDonald’s, whose “racist” corporate culture damaged Allen, without making a determination about the truth of the allegations.
Olguin stated, “Plaintiffs have asserted sufficient circumstances to warrant an inference of purposeful discrimination when taken together and viewed in the light most favorable to Plaintiffs.
McDonald’s lawyer Loretta Lynch said in a statement yesterday that the Chicago-based corporation felt the evidence would demonstrate there was no prejudice and that the case was “about money, not race.”
According to her, “Plaintiffs’ baseless charges overlook both McDonald’s reasonable economic justifications for not investing more on their channels and the company’s long-standing commercial partnerships with many other diverse-owned partners.”
The issue, according to Allen, is “about the economic participation of African American-owned enterprises in the US economy,” according to a statement.
“McDonald’s robs African American customers of billions while providing nearly little in return.”
According to the complaint, 40% of fast food patrons are black, yet McDonald’s only allocated 0.3% of their $1.6 billion US marketing budget to black-owned media in 2019.
McDonald’s said in May 2021 that it will increase national ad expenditure with black-owned media to 5% from 2% by 2024.
Olguin rejected a previous iteration of Allen’s claim last November after concluding that there was no evidence of deliberate and intentional prejudice against his enterprises.