Sonic apologizes after black teens say they were told to leave a Texas restaurant
Sonic, the popular fast-food chain, issued an apology over the weekend after employees told a group of North Dallas black teens that the police would be called if they didn’t leave the restaurant’s patio.
The incident happened on May 29, and the group of teens said they were shaken after the confrontation.
“My son and six of his friends, all African-American, came to Sonic to hang out like they have done for several weeks and years, particularly since they started driving,” Shonn Brown, the mother of one of the teens, said to WFAA in Dallas. “One of the employees from Sonic came up to them as they were all visiting and said that they would need to get in their cars or the police would be called.”
The COVID-19 pandemic had closed the fast-food chain’s patios, but Brown told WFAA that “two groups of white kids ate in the same spot shortly after,” but were never told the police would get involved.
“So all those kids being black, the use of the words ‘police will be involved’ is like a threat to them,” Brown said, according to the news outlet. “They were intimidated and they were scared so they didn’t just get in their cars, they left immediately and came home and told their parents. Some of them visibly shaking, some of them really quiet and trying to process how this happened.”
Sonic issued a statement apologizing to the teens involved, according to NBC DFW.
“Sonic unequivocally opposes racism and intolerance of any kind. We celebrate diversity and strive to consistently create an environment that highly values inclusion,” the statement read. “Unfortunately, a recent event at our Drive-In restaurant in Dallas, Texas, was handled inappropriately and did not live up to our standards. As soon as we were alerted to the situation by the families involved, we engaged in a valuable discussion on race, equality and a deeper understanding of social justice issues and ways we can improve as a company.”
The teens spoke to CBS DFW.com about what happened.
“We were having a good time standing around talking,” says MJ Ward, one of the teens involved. “This time we were asked to leave and were told the police were going to be called if we didn’t leave immediately.”
“My heart just like dropped,” 17-year-old Zoe Purdy told CBS DFW. “I don’t know if I’m getting a good cop, or a bad cop… I don’t know how it’s going to play out. It’s just very scary.”
Brown, who is also a local attorney, said that the surveillance video of the incident showed nothing that would justify a police call, CBS reported.
The families of those involved organized a drive-thru protest over the weekend to show support for the teens.
Cars filled the drive-thru lane of the Sonic in order to protest the treatment of the teens, NBC reported.
“I almost started crying,” said Elle Grinnell, another teen involved, per CBS. “Because everyone wanted to see change in the community, from just one incident that happened.”