A former Starbucks regional manager was just awarded $25.6 million after she was fired from her job following the arrests of two Black men at a Philadelphia store five years ago in a case that set a categorical example of racial profiling and implicit bias.
A New Jersey federal jury ruled that Starbucks violated the federal civil rights of Shannon Phillips. That jury ultimately determined that Starbucks fired Phillips “because she was white,” The New York Times reports.
In a unanimous decision, jurors concluded that race was a determinative factor in Phillips’ firing, violating federal and state anti-discrimination laws.
In April 2018, two Black men entered a Starbucks shop in Rittenhouse Square, waiting on their white business partner to arrive. After not ordering anything, one of the men asked to use the bathroom and was refused. The staff asked the men to leave, and when they didn’t, one worker called the police to report they were trespassing.
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Both men were arrested at the shop. Cellphone footage capturing their arrests was heavily circulated online, garnering a tremendous number of views and a wave of backlash, triggering several boycotts and protests at the time. The imposing amount of attention prompted Starbucks to shut down 8,000 of its stores for racial bias training as well as an apology from CEO Kevin Johnson.
The two men were released, and no charges were brought against them.
Shannon Phillips was terminated less than a month after the arrests. As the former regional manager, Phillips oversaw Starbucks locations in southern New Jersey, Delaware, Maryland, and the Philly region for 13 years. However, she had nothing to do with the arrests.
Phillips federally sued the chain in 2019, alleging that discrimination played a role in her firing…
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