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Statement from the UFCW Minority Coalition on Walmart's Pattern of Race-Based Incidents

On March 14, 2010, customers at the Walmart in Washington Township, New Jersey were shocked to hear, over the store announcement system, "Attention Walmart Customers: All black people leave the store now." Offended customers have promised not to return to the store.

"It's never been more important for citizens to support businesses that respect our communities," said Don Cash, President of the UFCW Minority Coalition. "Walmart needs to examine all of its operations - from public access to its store announcement system to its pricing, online marketing, hiring and sourcing practices - to ensure that no racially-biased actions occur in the company."

The New Jersey incident is under investigation by public safety officials and Walmart. In the meantime, the African-American community is offended by the retail giant's pattern of racial incidents.

• Last month, Walmart was exposed for selling black Barbie Dolls for half the price of white Barbies.
• In 2006, Walmart's online presence suggested people who bought "Charlie and the Chocolate Factory" and "Planet of the Apes" might also be interested in "Martin Luther King: I Have A Dream/Assassination of MLK" and "Unforgivable Blackness: The Rise and Fall of Jack Johnson."
• In 2008, the NAACP took issue with Walmart and called on the retailer to address discriminatory practices.
• In July 2009, Wal-Mart settled a $17.5 million class action litigation with 4,500 workers charging the company with systematically discriminating against African-Americans applying for truck driver positions.
• In May 2009, the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) sued Wal-Mart subsidiary Sam's Club for racial harassment of Latinos in Fresno, California for subjecting Latino employees to repeated verbal harassment and derogatory names.

"We spend our money with companies that we feel promote the value of diversity and community. Walmart seems to be tone-deaf to the issues facing a large segment of its customer-base," continued Cash.

The UFCW Minority Coalition develops a unified voice, and promotes diversity and inclusion within the labor movement.

For more information contact Don Cash at (240) 381-8462 or dcash@local400.org or press@ufcw.org.

UFCW
Don Cash, 240-381-8462
dcash@local400.org