Chair of County Commissioners Speaks on Experiences with Retail Racism
On March 8 the Alachua County Community Remembrance Project held an event to share history with local residents about Jim Crow laws in the county.
Alachua County Board of Commissioners (BOC) Chair Charles “Chuck” Chestnut IV attended the event and spoke about it at the BOC meeting last week.
Chestnut said author Michelle Dunlap attended the event and spoke about her book “Retail Racism.”
Chestnut said Dunlap “was talking about the experiences African Americans have when they walk into stores. She also talked about the killings by the police and how they’d be generated by a person going to a market, leaving, getting stopped by the police, and being killed.”
Chestnut spoke on his own experiences with retail racism. “Last week I went to AT&T to pay my phone bill…. I went in the store with my jeans and T-shirt, and I’m standing in line waiting to be serviced. A lady walks in and says, ‘Can I help you?’ I said, ‘Ma’am, I’ve been here; as a matter of fact, forget it,’ and I left.”
Chestnut said, “I don’t believe in making public scenes. I could’ve made a public scene, but I didn’t. Those are the kinds of things African Americans go through…. In my younger days I had the opportunity to shop at Belk Lindsey, and I was followed around their store by security. That wasn’t pleasant.”
Chestnut said the Belk Lindsey security officer kept asking, “Can I help you?” He responded, “No ma’am, I’m looking.” Chestnut said he left the store.
Chestnut said that retail racism forces African Americans to do business online instead of going into a store.
Dunlap’s book “Retail Racism” is available online and can be found at the Lynx book store.
