Franklin Pierce
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A white Starbucks manager who was fired after two black men were refused access to a Philadelphia store bathroom — triggering nationwide racial protests — has been awarded $25 million by a federal jury after she argued she was axed because of her race.
Shannon Phillips, a regional manager who oversaw several Starbucks locations across New Jersey and Pennsylvania, argued in a lawsuit she was cut loose by the coffee giant after viral footage of the two black men being arrested in 2018 sparked a firestorm of racial backlash.
Phillips argued she had nothing to do with the arrests but Starbucks management used her as a “scapegoat” in order to prove the company was taking action amid the controversy.
The jury’s verdict, handed down on Monday, found Phillips’ race was a factor in the company’s decision to sack her, which was a violation of her civil rights.
The saga unfolded when an employee at the Rittenhouse Square location had called 911 on April 12, 2018, after the two men, Rashon Nelson and Donte Robinson, were denied access to the bathroom because they weren’t paying customers — and then refused to leave.
White Starbucks manager fired after arrest of two black men wins $25M lawsuit
Shannon Phillips, a regional manager who oversaw several Starbucks locations across New Jersey and Pennsylvania, argued in a lawsuit she was cut loose by the coffee giant after viral footage of the two black men being arrested in 2018 sparked a firestorm of racial backlash.
Phillips argued she had nothing to do with the arrests but Starbucks management used her as a “scapegoat” in order to prove the company was taking action amid the controversy.
The jury’s verdict, handed down on Monday, found Phillips’ race was a factor in the company’s decision to sack her, which was a violation of her civil rights.
The saga unfolded when an employee at the Rittenhouse Square location had called 911 on April 12, 2018, after the two men, Rashon Nelson and Donte Robinson, were denied access to the bathroom because they weren’t paying customers — and then refused to leave.
White Starbucks manager fired after arrest of two black men wins $25M lawsuit
