Protesters raise fists, fingers at Fort Worth Whataburger at center of BLM mask flap
Thrusting fists and middle fingers toward the restaurant’s front windows, demonstrators gathered Wednesday night outside a Fort Worth Whataburger restaurant in opposition to its handling of an employee who wore a Black Lives Matter face mask as she worked.
The employee appears to have unwittingly resigned during a discussion of the mask with a manager on Tuesday.
Protesters blocked Brentwood Stair Road in front of the restaurant. At other times they stood closer to the business, mostly on a sidewalk, although some people strayed into the parking lot. Service continued. At one point, a person inside turned off the lights in a section of the restaurant.
The Whataburger conflict was a collision of novel coronavirus precautions and a flare this year of protests focused on racial justice.
The situation was about more than a mask, said Henry Williams IV, an organizer of the demonstration.
“It’s a statement that, ‘Hey, my life matters, and I happen to be Black. If that bothers you, that’s part of the problem,’” he said.
Tambourine and makeshift plastic drum beats and chants filled the night air. The protesters’ cries covered policing, race and other matters beyond the Whataburger mask dispute.
“No justice. No peace,” the demonstrators chanted. “[Expletive] the racist ... police.”
Employee Ma’Kiya Congious, who was at the protest, was involved on Tuesday in a dispute with a senior manager.
Congious, 19, arrived for her shift Tuesday morning wearing a Black Lives Matter mask, as she had previously. When a customer complained, according to Congious, management condemned the act, leading her to ask about the protocol for providing two weeks’ notice of a resignation.
In a statement, Whataburger said the restaurant accepted her resignation and intended to pay for her two weeks of scheduled shifts. “Whataburger supports racial equality,” the statement read. “This is simply a matter of enforcing our uniform policy. Whataburger employees are provided company-issued masks that comply with our policy and adhere to CDC and local government guidance.”
Congious said she wore the mask to align with a movement she believes brings attention to injustice and racism happening all over the world. Whataburger’s actions represented an opposition to her support, she said.
In a conversation recorded by Congious, she asked management about how to give her two weeks’ notice for resigning. “Can I put my two weeks notice in?” she said.
A manager responded, “You want to put your two weeks notice in? We accept it and you don’t have to come back at all.”
Congious said she wanted to clarify with management its mask policy and fully understand what the manager meant about providing notice. Management called police when Congious declined to leave.
Officers spoke with Congious, and she left when a manager gave her a corporate office telephone number, according to a Fort Worth police spokesman. A Whataburger spokesman said managers called the police because they believed she was making threats.
This story was originally published August 6, 2020 at 6:00 AM.
