‘SYSTEMIC AND COVERT’

Black Ex-Franchise Owners Sue McDonald’s for Racial Discrimination

Over 50 Black former franchisees filed a federal lawsuit alleging they were “denied equal opportunity to economic success.”

Fifty-two Black former McDonald’s franchise owners filed a lawsuit in Illinois federal court yesterday, accusing the fast-food giant of “systematic and covert racial discrimination” and denial of equal economic opportunity. The lawsuit alleges that McDonald’s steered franchise owners towards “depressed, crime-ridden” neighborhoods, where sales are lower and costs are higher. The plaintiffs, who altogether have run over 200 McDonald’s locations in the past decade, are seeking damages up to $1 billion. NPR reports that this isn’t the first time the company has been accused of systemic racial bias. A report from Business Insider showed an earning gap between Black and white owners, while an unrelated lawsuit brought by two Black senior executives alleged that the fast-food giant “drove out” Black leaders and franchisees. In response to NPR, McDonald’s denied the lawsuit’s allegations, saying they “fly in the face of everything we stand for as an organization.”