Current Events > McDonald's CEO's racist text to Chicago mayor sparks protests

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https://nypost.com/2021/11/03/mcdonalds-ceos-racist-text-to-chicago-mayor-sparks-protest/

McDonalds head honcho Chris Kempczinski is under fire over a text message he sent to Chicago Mayor Lori Lightfoot about shootings in the city that critics say was racist and ignorant. Protesters say the message sent on April 19 but revealed Tuesday appeared to blame parents who failed their children. p.s. tragic shootings in last week, both at our restaurant yesterday and with Adam Toldeo [sic]. With both, the parents failed those kids which I know is something you cant say. Even harder to fix, he said, according to WBEZ Chicago, which obtained the text through a Freedom of Information Act request. The text was sent shortly after Lightfoot had visited the McDonalds headquarters and appeared to be referring to the deaths of Jaslyn Adams, 7, who was killed the day before the text in her fathers car outside a Chicago area McDonalds, and Adam Toledo, 13, who was fatally shot by police the month prior. Activist groups are now reportedly planning a protest Wednesday outside of the McDonalds headquarters. The group of 12 organizations, including Fight for $15 and the Chicago Alliance Against Racist and Political Repression, will also publish an open letter addressing the text, according to Insider.

McDonalds area workers will also walk off the job Wednesday to join the protest, according to WBEZ. Its clear to us youre the one who has failed here, reads the open letter, which was viewed by Insider. Your text message was ignorant, racist and unacceptable coming from anyone, let alone the CEO of McDonalds, a company that spends big money to market to communities of color and purports to stand with Black lives. The letter adds that McDonalds has a rotten, racist culture under Kempczinski, noting that the burger chain was sued last year by over 50 Black franchisees in a $1 billion racial discrimination complaint that alleged systematic and covert racial discrimination on McDonalds part. In June, a similar lawsuit was dismissed by a judge, who said, The court does not mean to imply that McDonalds operations over the years have not been tainted by the brush of racism, but historical discrimination did not justify the lawsuit. Kempczinski acknowledged that his text to Lightfoot was wrong in a note to staff, which was viewed by The Post. In the text exchange, I thanked Mayor Lightfoot for the visit and reflected on our conversation about the recent tragedies, commenting that the parents failed those kids,' he wrote. When I wrote this, I was thinking through my lens as a parent and reacted viscerally. But I have not walked in the shoes of Adams or Jaslyns family and so many others who are facing a very different reality. Not taking the time to think about this from their viewpoint was wrong, and lacked the empathy and compassion I feel for these families. This is a lesson that I will carry with me. He also said McDonalds remains committed to working with civic and community leaders to bring an end to the recent surge in gun violence in Chicago.



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how in the fucking shit hell is that racist

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You know, one of the fantastic things about modern technology is that, if you type out something as brain-bendingly stupid as 'I know I'm not supposed to say this, but [insert offensive take],' you can actually go back and delete it before you send it! Truly amazing!

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PatrickMahomes posted...

how in the fucking shit hell is that racist

He assumed POC families have both parents in the home. When the individuals were being raised by single moms.

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So saying parents failed their children is racist now?

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kinetika_ posted...

So saying parents failed their children is racist now?

i don't really think so.
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BlueTigerLion posted...

He assumed POC families have both parents in the home. When the individuals were being raised by single moms.

Hes also victim blaming.

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kinetika_ posted...

So saying parents failed their children is racist now?

Everything is racist now, dont you know?

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BlueTigerLion posted...

He assumed POC families have both parents in the home. When the individuals were being raised by single moms.

Ok so the parent failed.

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According to Google the first kid died when a guy got out of a car with an AK and riddled the victim's car with bullets in an attempt to kill the father who was a known gang member to police. The second case was the one where the kid had a gun and police shot him after a foot chase.

So I don't know about that second case, but it is 100% fair to say that in the first case that father failed his child.

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If you call things racist then you don't need to offer a further explanation. Any counter argument can automatically be labeled racist. I mean, why should anyone take a racist seriously?

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BlueTigerLion posted...

He assumed POC families have both parents in the home. When the individuals were being raised by single moms.

thats still not racist, unless you think white single mothers dont exist

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BlueTigerLion posted...

He assumed POC families have both parents in the home.

So the literal opposite of the usual stereotype?

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I mean there's better reasons to protest McDonald's than this. Even race-related ones.

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TIL I learned the CEO of McDonalds isn't Ronald McDonald.

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Lebronwon posted...

In the text exchange, I thanked Mayor Lightfoot for the visit and reflected on our conversation about the recent tragedies, commenting that the parents failed those kids,' he wrote. When I wrote this, I was thinking through my lens as a parent and reacted viscerally. But I have not walked in the shoes of Adams or Jaslyns family and so many others who are facing a very different reality. Not taking the time to think about this from their viewpoint was wrong, and lacked the empathy and compassion I feel for these families. This is a lesson that I will carry with me.

OMG so racist /s

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"racist"

Not racist in any way. In fact, pretending it is racist to criticise the parents who fail to raise their kids in Chicago is a massive factor in why Chicago is the way it is.

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if he mentioned race, or even hinted at it, then that would be a valid criticism. but he didn't, so it's not.

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I sure as hell won't go to bat for a CEO, but nothing he said is wrong. I won't even tough the race part, that's a joke.
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I don't know if it's technically racist but blaming the parents for a black 13 year old getting shot to death by police in a country where police killing non-threatening kids is practically a national sport is pretty tasteless.

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Doe posted...

I don't know if it's technically racist but blaming the parents for a black 13 year old getting shot to death by police in a country where police killing non-threatening kids is practically a national sport is pretty tasteless.

I thought he meant the parents of the shooters.

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What a moron, how tf are parents responsible for the actions and behavior of their kids?

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I think they are fishing for an excuse to rile some people up.

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Lordgold666 posted...

What a moron, how tf are parents responsible for the actions and behavior of their kids?

s0nicfan posted...

According to Google the first kid died when a guy got out of a car with an AK and riddled the victim's car with bullets in an attempt to kill the father who was a known gang member to police. The second case was the one where the kid had a gun and police shot him after a foot chase.

So I don't know about that second case, but it is 100% fair to say that in the first case that father failed his child.

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