Black bartender alleges she was fired from Kid Rock’s restaurant for sporting an afro

The controversial musician was not named in the lawsuit but has chimed in on social media

Kid Rock thegrio.com
Kid Rock’s restaurant is being sued for unlawfully firing an employee because of her choice of hairstyle. (Photo by Oliver Contreras – Pool/Getty Images)

A Black bartender says she was suspended and fired from a Detroit restaurant owned by singerĀ Kid RockĀ for wearing her hair naturally, in an afro.

Carinne Silverman-MaddoxĀ of Oakland County, Mich., alleges in a lawsuit filed against the Kid Rock restaurant at Little Caesar’s Arena in Detroit that on Oct. 13, she showed up for work for the first time with her hair in a ā€œcurly afroā€ and she was ā€œabruptly suspended and dismissed for allegedly over pouring a single drink,ā€ theĀ Detroit Free PressĀ is reporting. Silverman-Maddox also says in the suit that she was the only Black bartender at the restaurant at the time at that white coworkers making the same error were admonished but not dismissed, according to the Free Press.

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The bartender also alleges that her lawyer sent a letter to the defendants indicating that a complaint had been filed with the Michigan Department of Civil Rights and it was after this that she was dismissed, according to the news organization. The lawsuit says the firing was in retaliation for the legal action.

Kid Rock, whose real name isĀ Robert Ritchie, did not respond directly to theĀ Free Press, but in a tweet, wrote, ā€œRe: Detroit Free Press…. More bad journalism. Another attempt to get cheap clicks and views. Only minor investigating instead of immediate reporting would reveal the correct facts. -Kid Rock.ā€

Kid Rock is not named as a defendant in the suit. The legal action namesĀ Bobby MoscowĀ LLC and Top Dog Records, both tied to the singer,Ā the news organization reported. Bobby Moscow did not immediately respondĀ to the FreeĀ Press’ request for comment.

Delaware North Companies, which operates the restaurant, also is named in the suit and told theĀ FreeĀ Press in a statement: ā€œWe are aware of the complaint and are investigating.ā€

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This is not the first time that Kid Rock has been embroiled in a race-related controversy. About 200 protesters showed up in September 2017 when Kid Rock opened the Little Caesar’s Arena, and one protester told theĀ Free PressĀ that the singer’s presence was an insult because of his past practice of having the Confederate flag onstage during performances as well as comments viewed as racially insensitive.