Discrimination? Racism? Inequality? You be the judge… About a month following a rumor I heard through a friend about how a former DJ was no longer asked to DJ at Maker’s Lounge because he was attracting a crowd that was ‘too dark’, I read about a pending lawsuit against Maker’s Mark Bourbon Lounge on 4th Street Live, alleging discrimination. Below, I provided a few media outlets and their reports, in addition to something that caught my attention in an email I received yesterday via their promotional distribution list. I’m not here to pass judgement… so YOU BE THE JUDGE!
- Read about what Race Discrimination is HERE.
- Facts about Race/Color Discrimination provided by the EEOC HERE.
- Statistics by EEOC: In fiscal year 2008, EEOC received 33,937 charges of race discrimination. EEOC resolved 28,321 race charges in FY 2008, and recovered $79.3 million in monetary benefits for charging parties and other aggrieved individuals (not including monetary benefits obtained through litigation).
WLKY reports on the lawsuit and you can view the VIDEO here: Ex-Employee Sues Maker\’s Mark Lounge
Additionally, the Courier Journal reports: The former director of promotions and marketing for Maker’s Mark Bourbon House and Lounge at 4th Street Live has sued the bar, claiming she was instructed by management to discriminate against African-American patrons. Kiersten Trover-Gillam filed suit earlier this week in Jefferson Circuit Court, claiming management instructed her that it wanted a “predominantly white crowd” and that she needed to “keep out the darker element.”
Three alleged incidents are detailed in the suit:
*Trover-Gillam was instructed to approach a group of African Americans having a birthday party, get contact information under the pretext of signing them up for restaurant promotions, then remove them from the promotional contact list. Management instructed her to give a “false, nondiscriminatory answer” if asked why a check-mark was by a black person’s name.
*She was asked by a supervisor “what were you thinking?” after she booked a group of African American Central High School alumni for a promotional event. Subsequent to that, Trover-Gillam was told “things are not going well” and that she wasn’t “booking the types of parties” management wanted.
*She was instructed to convince African-American patrons to move to the back of the bar so they would not be visible in the front of the establishment. [Read the full article on the Courier-Journal]
I recently received a promotional email from Maker’s Mark Bourbon Lounge and noticed that for job opportunities, please send your resume and “picture”. Though I don’t believe it’s illegal by any means to request a photo during the screening process, it seems a bit abrasive during a time when such a lawsuit has been filed against Maker’s Lounge… don’t cha think?
This also comes during a time when a recent patron of 4th Street Live has plans to also push legal action against 4th Street Live over a Halloween Controversy – also alleging discrimination. Read the full article HERE.
*** If you know any additional information – please share via the comments or feel free to contact me directly via my CONTACT ME form.
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