AMC Theaters has fired three employees at one of its Louisiana locations after an African American women’s group accused them of racial profiling during a screening of “Harriet.”
According to NBC New Orleans affiliate WDSU, a letter was sent from the lawyer of organization 504 Queens to AMC describing an incident that occurred when 15 of its members bought tickets for a screening of the Harriet Tubman biopic at AMC’s Clearview Palace 12 in Metairie, LA, on November 7.
The organization said that three different employees, including a kitchen worker, interrupted the screening to ask the organization to verify their tickets and seating assignments. One of the employees stopped the screening and turned the theater lights on, leading to other attendees demanding that one of the 504 Queens members leave.
“You mean to tell me a kitchen employee can stop a movie, and also, turn on all the lights to embarrass me? And to be aggressive with me in that manner?” one member told WDSU. “It was like the 1800s coming back to my face in 2019.”
In response, AMC Theaters’ general counsel Kevin Connor apologized to 504 Queens on behalf of the company and agreed to the organization’s requests to remedy the situation in addition to the dismissal of the three employees.
The requests included free screenings of “Harriet” to local high school students, donation of the Clearview location’s Black Friday revenue to 504 Queens along with movie passes for its mentorship program, and mandatory unconscious bias training for its Louisiana theater employees. A spokesperson for AMC declined further comment.