The Cheesecake Factory recently came under fire by three African American women who claim they were discriminated against while visiting the Redondo Beach location. According to reports from the women, they’re male white server referred to them as ‘you people,’ and the manager allegedly told them, ‘you are nobody.”
The Cheesecake Factory recently came under fire by three African American women who claim they were discriminated against while visiting the Redondo Beach location. According to reports from the women, they’re male white server referred to them as ‘you people,’ and the manager allegedly told them, ‘you are nobody.”
As a result of their treatment, the women, Latonia Whyte, Kimberly Jones and Lucy Ngaujah, filed a lawsuit in Los Angeles Superior Court. In addition to their complaints about their server and manager, the women also allege in their suit that a “female white manager threatened to sue them for taking cellphone footage of non-black customers being served after the plaintiffs were allegedly denied service.” The suit is seeking “unspecified damages on allegations of civil rights violations and intentional infliction of emotional distress.”
So what happened, exactly? Well, it all began when the three women visited the Cheesecake Factory in Redondo Beach on July 1, 2017, to celebrate Jones’ belated birthday. According to the suit, Whyte and Ngaujah arrived before Jones, and about 20 minutes after being seated, a white server approached the two and allegedly said, “I’m closing you both out and you people should leave.” He added, “Our computers are down and I’m not serving you people.”
The two women remained in their seats, though. Jones arrived later and while sipping on soup that was served cold, the three women watched “non-black customers being served food, including white guests adjacent to their table.” However, according to the complaint “the server refused to tend to the plaintiffs, telling them, ‘I gave you soup. You can pay for your drinks and leave. If you want to order food, go to the bar.’”
At that point, Whyte asked the server if they were being treated so poorly because of their skin color. The server allegedly replied, “Yeah, that too.”
According to the suit, there were two managers working at the restaurant that night, “including a white female who was dismissive of the plaintiffs after Ngaujah complained, and a male who said he would serve them instead. While the trio was waiting, Whyte used her phone to record images of “non-black guests being served,” according to the suit. This prompted the female manager to confront the three, demanding that Whyte turn over her phone. She said, “You all think you’re celebrities. Everybody wants to sue and you are nobody.”
Finally, two hours after arrived, the plaintiffs were able to place a food order when an African American server came to their table and “served them the rest of the night.” At the end of their meal, the trio paid their bill and left. However, the experience didn’t sit right with the women, and Whyte was so bothered that she reached out to a guest relations expert several days after the incident to discuss the alleged discrimination. According to the suit, she “received by email a $25 Cheesecake Factory gift certificate accompanied by a message that stated, ‘Very sorry to learn this visit was so disappointing.’”
The Cheesecake Factory’s vice president of legal services, Sidney Greathouse, responded to the recent lawsuit by issuing the following statement:
“We do not tolerate discrimination in any of our business practices. While we will not comment on the facts of the case, we deny the allegations in the complaint and look forward to this matter being resolved in the appropriate forum.”
Sources:
Cheesecake Factory Sued for Alleged Racial Discrimination
LA Cheesecake Factory sued for alleged civil rights violations, racial discrimination
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