Taco Bell Apologizes For Firing An Employee For BLM Face Mask — Twitter Is Going CRAZY [VIDEO]
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Taco Bell employee Denzel Skinner posted a now-viral video on Facebook Live while getting fired for wearing a Black Lives Matter face mask. This tense conversation between Skinner and his manager had people questioning the popular food chains stance on the Black Lives Matter movement and sent Twitter into an uproar.
Taco Bell Employee Denzel Skinner Got Fired For Wearing BLM Merch
After working at the Youngstown, Ohio Taco Bell location for eight years, Skinner refused to remove his Black Lives Matter face mask after his manager asked him to. The Black Lives Matter Movement has been sweeping across the world after the death of George Floyd, sparking protests and calls for justice. In the video, Skinner and the manager are engaged in a heated argument where Skinner reiterates that he is not taking the mask off. Due to the coronavirus pandemic, face masks are permitted for most restaurant workers in the United States to help prevent the spread of the deadly virus. “I’m standing up for what’s right,” said Skinner in the video. The manager said that the face masks that employees wear must be plain and that they cannot bring politics into the building. “I’m not bringing politics in, this is what I’m standing for,” said Skinner.
The manager said that she is just doing her job while Skinner said that he is doing his too. “It’s not that it’s a problem with me, Denzel, it’s a company thing” she goes on to say. Skinner shakes his head to the camera. She continued to ask Skinner how he would feel if someone wore something with white people on it. She said that while she stands for the Black Lives Matter Movement, she has to follow company policy. On June 2, Taco Bell tweeted a statement that they “don’t tolerate racism or violence against black people.” Some people think this is very contradictory to Skinner getting fired for wearing a Black Lives Matter face mask.
Read the full letter from our CEO, Mark King.
— Taco Bell (@tacobell) June 2, 2020
We're muting our channels for the rest of the week to reflect, learn, and listen.
Twitter Users Are Ready To Cancel The Food Chain Out Of Anger And Frustration
After the incident occurred, a spokesperson for Taco Bell Corp. spoke with FOX Business to say that the company stands for Black Lives Matter. “We were disappointed to learn about the incident that took place in Youngstown, OH. We take this very seriously.” The spokesperson continued on to say that they were working with the location to address the issue. The company’s Chief People Officer and Chief Diversity and Inclusion Officer spoke with Skinner to apologize. The statement also revealed that the Taco Bell policy does not prevent employees from wearing Black Lives Matter masks. But, Skinner’s video sheds further light on the issue of racism in America for tons of people on Twitter.
The hashtag #RIPTacoBell began trending on Twitter with people expressing outrage and saying they will no longer support the company. Along with this, #TacoBellIsOverParty also began flooding Twitter. One Twitter user said that they will not “spend a single dime at Taco Bell.”
Another Twitter user replied to the video saying “This sickens me.”
People Compared This To The Recent Starbucks BLM Merch Incident
Taco Bell joins a list of other companies like Starbucks that had contradictory stances on Black Lives Matter with their statements and what actually occurred in person at their store locations.
In fact, Starbucks mentioned they would be giving their employees Black Lives Matter shirts after a leaked memo went around saying they were not allowed to wear any kind of BLM merchandise. One Twitter user suggested Taco Bell would do the same for its employees after Skinner was fired.
And, there were hundreds of people that suggested alternative places to eat at including supporting local businesses like family owned Mexican restaurants.
It is not yet clear if the manager of the Taco Bell location was reprimanded or fired after this incident.
