Dominique Wilkins accuses restaurant of racial profiling
"Yup racism knows no boundaries man," said Dominique Wilkins
Nine-time NBA All-Star Dominique Wilkins believes himself a victim of racial profiling after being denied service at an Atlanta restaurant, reported TMZ.
The incident occurred on Saturday at Le Bilboquet in Buckhead, and the establishment denies the accusation of racism, saying they were merely enforcing a dress code to which Wilkins’ attire did not adhere.
The Hall of Famer wrote on Twitter, “In my many years in the world, I’ve eaten at some of the greatest restaurants in the world, but never have I felt prejudice or been turned away because of the color of my skin, until today in #atlanta in @LeBilboquetAtl #turnedawaybecauseimblack.”
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Narrating the episode, he said “They looked me up and down … and to add insult, talked about how my clothes were not appropriate when I was wearing designer casual pants and a shirt,” according to TMZ.
“I would have been fine if they would have said just no tables,” Wilkins said according to Fox 5 Atlanta. He said that restaurant employees first told him they were without the availability to seat him before they admonished his “inappropriate” apparel.
“When I first got there, they said no tables, then they said I was not dressed fashionably enough. I guess if there were no tables, then why the follow up comment,” he inquired in another Twitter post.
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In rebuttal, the restaurant released a statement that read, “We, at Le Bilboquet, do our best to accommodate all of our guests. However, we have received consistent complaints from our patrons regarding other guest’s wardrobe choices. As a result, to protect our restaurant’s culture, we installed a minimum standard in our ‘business casual’ attire dress code which includes jeans and sneakers but prohibits baseball caps and athletic clothing including sweat pants and tops.”
“Though the definition of ‘casual’ is ever evolving, we strive to maintain our policy requirement daily but it isn’t a perfect system,” the statement continued.
Many Twitter users were in support of the Atlanta Hawks legend, claiming to have witnessed patrons also dressed in “athletic clothing” allowed to dine while others were, like Wilkins, turned away, to which he responded, “Truly appreciate all your love and support.”
“Yup racism knows no boundaries man,” he summarized on Twitter.
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