Essay 494

Is it the shoes? No, it’s a MultiCultClassics Monologue…

• Just sue it. A group of current and former Black employees at Niketown in Chicago filed a racial discrimination lawsuit in 2003 that has now been given class-action status. The charges include:

- Segregating Blacks into lower-paying stockroom and cashier positions.

- Denying opportunities for promotions to sales positions by failing to post job openings.

- Hiring Blacks into part-time rather than full-time positions that received benefits, such as health insurance and paid vacation.

- Subjecting Black employees to searches when leaving the store, while Caucasian employees were free from such searches. Work rules regarding attendance, sick leave and employee discounts also were unequally applied, the suit said.

No word if Mars Blackmon will be asked to provide testimony.

• Civil rights leader Andrew Young has been raising eyebrows with his public support of Wal-Mart. Young was hired by the mega-retailer as a “corporate cheerleader,” appearing at store openings to dance with clerks and posing for pictures at company-sponsored events. A professor of Black studies at Georgia State University griped, “What [Young’s] doing is providing credibility and legitimacy for some of these corporations that have policies that just reinforce inequality.” Or maybe he’s just hoping to appear in a Wal-Mart commercial with Queen Latifah and Destiny’s Child.

• Kanab, a predominately Mormon town in Utah, sparked controversy with a resolution recently passed by its City Council. The resolution rules in favor of the “natural family” led by a working dad, a stay-at-home mom and a “full quiver of children.” Critics argue the measure smacks of homophobia and sexism. To deflect negative publicity, the City Council could hire Andrew Young to dance with them.

• Thousands marched in a Milwaukee protest titled, “A Day Without Latinos.” The rally sought to bring attention to Congress’ efforts targeting undocumented workers. The Minuteman Project will probably hold a counter-protest titled, “A Country Without Latinos.”