Recently, UWM students Sophia Madrid and Akari Redmond were shopping at a local T.J. Maxx in Racine when they felt sudden tension upon their arrival at the store.
“I felt like as soon as we walked in the energy kind of shifts,” said Madrid. “Out of nowhere it’s like all the tension and all eyes are on us.”
Their intention was to browse around and purchase a few bags. They noticed some workers
beginning to look at them and make comments about their presence. As the young couple
continued navigating through the store, it became obvious that they were being followed
around by the workers.
The couple made their way to the jewelry section of the store and noticed workers beginning to radio each other and make their way toward Madrid and Redmond.
They continuously asked the two if they need help with anything and pressured the couple to check out in the back, not allowing them to continue their shopping making them feel rushed.
“There were four associates assembled at the front of the entrance because they thought we were going to run out,” said Madrid. “At this point I’m uneasy, they are doing this all for us… I feel uncomfortable. I don’t know why they did that. There was no reason for people to chase me around the store trying to get me to check out quicker.”
Not knowing where to voice the uncomfortable situation, the two decided to upload a TikTok video to address the incident.
The post discussing the encounter now has 9.4 million views and is continuing to be
shared worldwide. Since then, corporate has reached out to both Madrid and Redmond as well as the T.J. Maxx social media team giving out their apologies.
“They kind of just gave us a generic response,” explained Madrid. “I felt like they didn’t care.”
Corporate not only sent over their apologies but also provided the couple with a gift card for the inconvenience.
“I felt like it was just a slap on the wrist in a sense,” said Madrid. “ I don’t want to step foot in a place where I don’t feel welcomed.”
The positive feedback is allowing the couple to not feel alone and feel supported throughout this difficult time for them. The encounter is an unfortunate reminder of the ongoing challenges Black shoppers are being faced with in their day-to-day lives.
“It still happens a lot around the world which is terrible,” said Redmond.
It is important to acknowledge the issues that people of color have to face and deal with on a constant basis. Racial profiling and discrimination is an issue that people of color have been a target of. The power of social media is giving a platform to ongoing issues that need to be addressed to advocate for justice and equality.
TJ Maxx has not released a public statement on the event but told the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel that it is reviewing the events.