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Racist CVS Managers Told Store Security To Target Minorities, Lawsuit Alleges
By
Nathan Tempey
Published Jun 4, 2015
Modified Jun 4, 2015
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Spencer Platt/Getty
By
Nathan Tempey
Published Jun 4, 2015
Modified Jun 4, 2015
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Four former CVS store detectives are suing the pharmacy giant, saying two managers who oversee security at stores in Queens and Manhattan forced them to follow black and Latino shoppers when there was no evidence of them stealing, throwing around heaps of hateful language in the process.
According to reports by the Post and the Times, the choice words outlined in the lawsuit include:
"That black n----- is over there stealing."
"Watch the black and Hispanic people to catch more cases."
"I'm going to get this black b----."
"That Spanish guy is a worthless piece of s----."
A worker also claims his boss once told him to "hide like a monkey" to catch shoplifters in the act, according to the Times. Three of the plaintiffs were fired this winter and spring, and a fourth was not allowed to return to work in the summer of 2013 after going on leave, the paper wrote.
CVS denied the allegations in a statement.
“CVS Health has firm nondiscrimination policies that it rigorously enforces. We serve all communities and we do not tolerate any policy or practice that discriminates against any group,” spokeswoman Carolyn Castel said. “We are shocked by the allegations in this Complaint and we intend to defend against them vigorously.”
Barneys and Macy's both paid out several hundred thousand dollars last year to settle racial profiling claims brought by state Attorney General Eric Schneiderman after complaints by shoppers who said they had been unfairly followed, and in some cases, unlawfully detained.
Tagged
barneys
cvs
discrimination
eric schneiderman
lawsuit
macy's
racial profiling
racism
security
shoplifting
shopping while black
Nathan Tempey
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