Tyrese Takes On Home Depot In $1M Racial Discrimination Lawsuit

Baby Boy actor and acclaimed R&B singer Tyrese Gibson‘s beef with Home Depot has escalated to a million-dollar lawsuit! Specifically, Tyrese is suing the corporate over alleged racial discrimination.

Tyrese Says He & His Team “Experienced Outrageous Discriminatory Mistreatment”

Entertainment Weekly studies that it reviewed the lawsuit, and Tyrese is searching for $1 million. Additionally, the artist desires to obtain damages, lawyer’s charges, and a judgment declaring that Home Depot violated California’s Unruh Civil Rights Act.

The case is centered round accusations that Tyrese and two members of his staff — Eric Mora and Manuel Hernandez — “experienced outrageous discriminatory mistreatment and consumer racial profiling first-hand.”

Tyrese says the trio was ready to take a look at at Home Depot when Gibson determined to attend in his car whereas Mora and Hernandez accomplished the transaction with the actor’s bank card.

However, a problem arose, which resulted in Gibson having to have interaction in a “heated discussion with the cashier” by way of FaceTime earlier than returning in individual.

“The cashier gave no reasonable explanation other than repeating ‘store policy’ and demanded to see a form of identification. … It was only after significant heated discussion with the cashier that Gibson was finally able to complete the transaction.”

As a end result, Tyrese says the Home Depot staff “purposely interfered with and refused to process the transaction based on their groundless suspicion of Gibson, Mora, and Hernandez arising from their skin color.” The lawsuit additionally speculates that Mora and Hernandez’s “national origin” performed an element within the alleged discrimination they confronted.

“This is a clear and deplorable instance of discriminatory mistreatment and consumer racial profiling. The treatment of Gibson, Mora and Hernandez by The Home Depot was humiliating and demeaning.”

In an announcement to Entertainment Weekly, a Home Depot spokesperson famous that “diversity and respect for all people” is likely one of the firm’s core values.

“We do not tolerate discrimination in any form. We value Mr. Gibson as a customer, and in the months since this happened, we’ve reached out to him and his attorneys several times to try to resolve his concerns. We will continue to do so.”

Video Of The Home Depot Interaction Emerged Earlier This Year

The scenario in query unfolded again in February, and Tyrese spoke on it by way of Instagram.

He shared a display recording of himself going backwards and forwards with the cashier by way of FaceTime, who repeatedly instructed Tyrese {that a} bodily ID was required as a consequence of “store policy.”

Tyrese’s gripe was as a consequence of his allegation that the scenario had by no means been a problem previously, and he threatened to have “the CEO of Home Depot” name the worker.

In a prolonged caption beneath the video, Tyrese wrote, “Racism is a disease.”

On Friday (Aug. 11), Tyrese uploaded one other portion of the interplay and declared that he was truly searching for $450 million. However, shops like Entertainment Weekly, PEOPLE, FOX 5 Atlanta, and others put the determine at a mere $1M.

“We envision a world free from discriminatory practices and consumer racial profiling. Just as I have done for the past 20-plus years, I pledge to continue to utilize my platform to empower the voiceless, fostering a spirit of unity and hope, while illuminating our shared path forward.”