Jay-Z has yet to respond to the ongoing petition calling for him to cancel his holiday clothing deal with Barney’s following the latest allegations against the flagship store. This week Barney’s and Jay-Z came under fire after a story leaked regarding Trayvon Christian [a black male] who was arrested and detained for two hours after purchasing a $350 Farragamo designer belt. The news made headlines as Christian points out that he was handpicked by undercover police because he was BLACK. Christian noted he was released from custody after his credit card was verified.
Another female named Kayla Phillips has come forward and told the Daily News that back in February of this year she too was “racially profiled” after purchasing a $2,5000 celine handbag.
” There were three men and a woman, says Phillips. Two of them attacked me and pushed me against a wall, and the other two appeared in front of me, blocking the turnstile. ” The cops started peppering her with questions and demanded to see her ID…. They were very rough. They kept asking me what I bought and saying “Show us your card. I didn’t know what was happening. “
” Police let Phillips go after her ID and credit card proved to be accurate. “
Similar to Christian, Phillips has since filed a $5 million dollar lawsuit against the NYPD and the city.
Sidebar: On a serious note. Why are our young kids shopping at Barney’s and or buying expensive designer items from any of the fifth avenue flagship stores for image sake? This is a classic case of “spending a dime” while earning a nickle“. Let’s be honest for a moment. This is not the first time nor will it be the last time an incident like this occurs [ie: Oprah recent shopping overseas] I really hope Phillps and Christian returned their items and never returned to make a purchase EVER again.
Following the new reports, Barney’s CEO Mark Lee had this to say:
” Barney’s New York believes that no customer should have unacceptable experience describe in recent media reports, and we offer our sincere regret and deepest apologies . “
Now, An employer is not fully responsible for the selfless actions of their staff but they hold some accountability because they’re staff is a reflection of their company and them. In both cases, a staff member contacted the NYPD accusing the them of suspicious purchases. With the holiday’s rolling around, Jay-Z may not be eligible to renege on his part of the deal, and Barney’s is looking forward to Jay-Z’s influential status to lure customers to shop at their establishment so I’m not surprised by the recent public apology.
Civil Rights leader, Al Sharpton said:
” My concern is that New York does not go from “STOP and FRISK” to “SHOP & FRISK “
This week Kirsten John Foy of the National Action Network will meet Barney’s CEO next week to discuss the racial profiling incidents.