Dive Summary:
- Upscale retailers have reached an agreement with civil rights leaders aimed at protecting African American shoppers from the “stop-and-frisk” practice.
- Barneys, Macy’s, Saks Fifth Avenue, Bergdorf Goodman, and Lord & Taylor are among the major retailers voluntarily adopting the new policy.
- Department stores must implement the new practices nationwide and will be subject to internal compliance checks.
Dive Insight:
“We left it to each store to figure out their specifics for posting, but it must be posted in common areas, available upon request and clearly placed on store websites,” said Kirsten John Foy, head of National Action Network in Brooklyn. Following the widely-publicized Barney’s incident involving racial profiling accusations by black shoppers in October, the luxury retailer was one the first department store chains to help hammer out the new “Customer’s Bill of Rights” with American civil rights leaders. Barney’s and Macy’s have denied engaging in racial profiling practices.
