McDonald’s Denies Using Travis Scott & Other Rappers To Cover Up Ongoing Racial Discrimination Lawsuits
Amid their successful collaborations with Travis Scott and Latin star J Balvin, McDonald’s is denying cover up allegations while they face two major racial discrimination lawsuits filed against them by current and former Black employees and franchise owners.
Per The Washington Post, one lawsuit, filed by two former executives in January 2020, claim the chain “conducted a ruthless purge” of its Black leaders and fostered a “hostile and abusive work environment” for Black executives and franchise owners. A second lawsuit, filed in September and comprised of 52 Black franchise owners, claims they were subjected to “systematic and covert racial discrimination” since the 1980s.
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Meanwhile, two race historians, Marcia Chatelain and Chin Jou, are claiming the company “should be in the doghouse when it comes to African Americans right now.” However, in a response to XXL, a rep says, “Any claim that McDonald’s collaboration with Travis Scott was launched in response to recent litigation is completely false. We teamed up with Travis—and our newest celebrity partner, J Balvin—because of their love for the McDonald’s brand, their widespread appeal and their loyal following among our younger customers and our crew.”
Against the racial discrimination allegations, a company emailed statement reads, “Not only do we categorically deny the allegations that these franchisees were unable to succeed because of any form of discrimination by McDonald’s, we are confident that the facts will show how committed we are to the diversity and equal opportunity of the McDonald’s System, including across our franchisees, suppliers and employees.”
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