Black Sixth-Graders Accuse Denny’s of Discrimination

Black sixth-graders on a field trip to Disney World were denied service at a Denny’s restaurant, school officials said Monday, the latest in a series of complaints against the chain that settled a $46-million discrimination lawsuit in 1994.

The students from Baltimore’s Ashburton Elementary-Middle School and their chaperons entered the Ocoee, Fla., restaurant Thursday night and were not greeted or seated, school officials said.

After seating themselves, the students waited 20 minutes before some received menus, but they left an hour later without being served. Meanwhile, white customers who entered later were served, said school officials, who added they plan to file a complaint with the company.

“The way we were greeted, actually entering the restaurant, we were not welcomed,” chaperon Peggy Brown said.

The incident will be investigated, said Ray Hood-Phillips, chief diversity officer for Denny’s, a post created following the 1994 settlement.

“If we find that discrimination has occurred, it doesn’t matter if it’s a company store or a franchise unit, we take swift action,” Hood-Phillips said. “Employees are fired if they’re found to discriminate, and if it’s a franchise, we take the franchise away.”

The lawsuit settled in 1994 was brought by black Secret Service agents who said they were denied service.

In January, several Florida corrections officers filed a discrimination complaint against Denny’s, saying they were turned away twice from one restaurant.

As part of an agreement with the Justice Department, the restaurant chain said it would retrain employees, feature minorities in its ads and hire an outside lawyer to monitor compliance.