A group of mostly African-American people celebrating a birthday party at a Buffalo Wild Wings in suburban Chicago allege they were asked to change tables because of their skin color, and the alleged incident last month led to firings announced Sunday, according to media reports.
Justin Vahl says he was at a Naperville restaurant Oct. 26 with children and adults when a host asked him about his ethnicity. Later, a manager asked the group to move because a regular customer didn’t want to sit near black people.
Vahl, of nearby Montgomery, says he’s multiracial. His wife, Mary, first shared the story on social media. After several managers tried to move the group, they left for another restaurant.
A Buffalo Wild Wings spokesperson says a “thorough internal investigation” is being conducted and apologized for “any unacceptable behavior.”
According to the Daily Herald newspaper, “On Sunday, Buffalo Wild Wings issued a statement saying it fired the employees.”
”We take this incident very seriously and after conducting a thorough, internal investigation have terminated the employees involved,” it said. “Buffalo Wild Wings values an inclusive environment and has zero tolerance for discrimination of any kind.”
The DuPage County NAACP says it’ll look into the matter.
Contributing: Daily Herald
