Augusta Chick-fil-A faces racial bias claims by black officer

AUGUSTA. Ga (WJBF)- An Augusta Chick-fil-A is facing allegations of discrimination from a worker toward an out-of-town police officer.

In August, four members of the Clover, South Carolina Police Department stopped at Chick-fil-A on Robert C. Daniel Junior Parkway for breakfast.

One officer, who is black, said his three white colleagues were given their food for free, while he was asked to pay. Now he is speaking out.

“When we arrived at the place, we went inside. It was only four people in line. It was myself and three other white sergeants. We were all sergeants. We were all dressed the same. We all got in the same line and we all ordered the food. I was the last one to place my order,” explained Sergeant Tracy Reid.

Sgt. Reid said he and his fellow officers were on their way to Cordell, GA to pick up several police vehicles when they stopped in Augusta to eat. He added that they were the only four people in the restaurant at the time.

He told NewsChannel 6 the other officers had their orders taken by a female cashier who was training a new employee. When it was his turn, a male team lead from the back of the house stepped in to take his order.

“When I came up, the team lead came to the register. When he came to the register, he took my order and I paid. I had to pay for my food. He told me, you know, the meal… and I didn’t say anything about ‘Is my food free?’ or ‘Why I didn’t get my food free?’ because we cannot ask for gratuities.”

Sgt. Reid explained that he was upset and embarrassed by what he believes was blatant racism. He said he wasn’t the only one who noticed the alleged slight.

“When I came back to the table, the rest of the sergeants were very disturbed, as I was disturbed. I was almost in a rage,” he said. “Detective Barnett was very, very upset and he said, ‘I’m going back up there.’ I said, ‘No, let’s don’t make a scene.’ I said, ‘Let’s let’s just you know,’ and I really didn’t eat my food. I dumped it in the trash can. But I said, ‘Listen. Let’s go.’ I was humiliated. I felt bad.”

Sgt. Reid wrote a letter to Chick-fil-A’s corporate office about the matter and a few weeks later he got a letter from the franchise’s owner, Kenny Hannah, along with two coupons for a free meal. He said it’s not enough and wants to see the restaurant improve training so something like this doesn’t happen again.

Sgt. Reid said that none of this is about the food or having to pay for it. He told us that it was about the way he was treated and how much it bothered him for weeks afterwards, which is why he sent the letter.

He added that he still hasn’t heard directly from the corporate office, nor has he responded to Hannah’s letter.

We reached out to Hannah, who referred us to the corporate office. A spokesperson for the company told us that the employee in question doesn’t normally work at the cash registers and was trying to help.

According to the spokesperson, the team lead believed Sgt. Reid was in another line and stepped up to help by taking his order, unaware of the discount policy for first responders. We are told he is still employed after they spoke to him, claiming there was no racism intended.

The spokesperson added that the corporate office sent an email to the team members at the Augusta Exchange location, reminding everyone of the policy.

Chick-fil-A also sent us the following statement from Hannah.

“We regret the unintentional impact this incident had and sincerely apologize to our Guest. We were deeply concerned by this claim. It appears to have been an honest oversight across separate lines and registers. We are strongly committed to supporting our community’s first responders.” – Kenny Hannah.

According to Sgt. Reid, Sheriff Gino Brantley heard about the alleged incident and called him to show support. He said Sheriff Brantley told him he was disturbed by what he heard and planned to send a letter to Chick-fil-A’s CEO.

Photojournalist: Gary Hipps.