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AFRICAN AMERICAN PATRONS FILE LAWSUIT AGAINST CRACKER BARREL RESTAURANTS FOR CIVIL
RIGHTS VIOLATIONS
A group of 23 African-Americans today filed a major civil rights action alleging
widespread racial discrimination directed at more than three dozen patrons at
two Cracker Barrel Restaurants in Little Rock, Arkansas. The suit which was filed
in federal district court in Little Rock alleges that the plaintiffs “have suffered,
are suffering, and will continue to suffer as a result of Cracker Barrel’s racially
discriminatory actions.” Some of the civil rights violations described in the
complaint include: providing preferential seating to white customers; creating
unreasonable wait times for African American customers; segregating seating in
restaurants by not asking or not honoring non-smoking section preferences of African
American customers; and by providing inferior service to that afforded white patrons.
Also
described in the complaint are allegations that Cracker Barrel’s corporate management
fails to investigate adequately and effectively complaints of discrimination and/or
has failed to institute an effective system for reporting and investigating incidents
of discrimination.
The
plaintiffs have requested that the Court remedy these practices by requiring the
defendant to take all necessary steps, including the payment of compensatory and
punitive damages, to remedy their discriminatory actions.
Plaintiffs
are represented by the Washington Lawyers’ Committee for Civil Rights and Urban
Affairs and the law firms of Covington & Burling and Kaplan, Brewer, Maxey & Haralson.
Cracker
Barrel operates over 400 restaurants in 41 states. An initial lawsuit challenging
Cracker Barrel's discriminatory policies brought on behalf of African-American
customers at 28 restaurants in 16 states throughout the country was filed in Rome,
Georgia by 42 individuals and the NAACP over a year ago. In that case over 400
witnesses in more than 200 cities have provided evidence in support of the plaintiffs'
allegations. Law firms representing the plaintiffs in this case include: Wiggins,
Childs, Quinn & Paantzas; Crowell & Moring; Piper, Rudnick; and Shaw Pittman.
In
announcing the filing of the case, Rod Boggs, Executive Director of the Washington
Lawyers’ Committee, stated “The case filed today in Little Rock is intended to
address serious allegations of many African Americans whose claims are not presently
before the Court in Georgia. The Washington Lawyers’ Committee welcomes the support
provided by Covington & Burling and Kaplan, Brewer, Maxey & Haralson to the effort.”
Boggs added that, “We anticipate that additional cases will be filed in the weeks
ahead concerning specific allegations of racial discrimination at Cracker Barrel
Restaurants throughout the country.”
In
commenting on the case, one of the plaintiffs, Lorraine Nelson, stated that, “Establishments
cannot continue to do this in 2003. My participation in this case is to honor
the memory of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.”
As
part of the outreach efforts in the case, a Cracker Barrel Complaint Hotline has
been established: 1(800) 299-8308. Individuals who believe they may have experienced
racial discrimination at Cracker Barrel Restaurants are urged to call this number
to report their experiences.
The
Washington Lawyers’ Committee was established in 1968 to provide pro bono legal
services to address issues of discrimination and entrenched poverty. Since its
founding, the Committee has handled more than 5,000 cases on behalf of individuals
and groups in the areas of equal employment opportunity, fair housing, public
accommodations, public education, asylum and refugee rights, and disability rights.
Among its more prominent cases have been lawsuits successfully challenging class-based
racial discrimination in public accommodations at Denny’s Restaurants and Holiday
Spas. For more information about the Committee see www.washlaw.org.