Burger King Employee Wears Blackface at a Drive-Thru on Halloween: Customer's Video Nears 190,000 Likes as the Chain Responds
On October 31, Halloween, customer Shavelle Devine filmed a white Burger King employee wearing blackface while working at a drive-thru window and posted the video to Facebook. The clip went viral, spread to platforms including Instagram, and has drawn nearly 190,000 likes. According to PEOPLE magazine, Devine, who is Black, told the magazine she finds the behavior "unacceptable" and is disappointed with Burger King's response. Burger King did not share the location of the restaurant where the incident occurred.
In the video, as reported by PEOPLE, Devine asked the employee what she was dressed as that day. "I'm just Black today," the employee replied. Asked whether she thought it was okay, the employee said, "As long as you have a good heart." When Devine asked whether she was supporting the Black Lives Matter movement, the employee answered: "Well, no, I just wanted to be Black." In the clip, the employee laughed, apologized, and stumbled over Devine's question about the struggles Black people go through.
In a statement shared with PEOPLE, Devine said she felt "disappointment, frustration, and concern" over the incident. "I find this behavior completely unacceptable, offensive, and disrespectful," she said. "African Americans should not have to continuously explain why racism is offensive or why certain actions are unacceptable." She added that she was concerned by the "apparent lack of seriousness" with which Burger King employees handled the incident, saying their reactions "seemed more like a joke." As a major national business, she said, Burger King has a responsibility to create an environment where customers and employees of every racial background feel respected, valued, and safe.
"We are aware of the video and take the matter very seriously," a Burger King spokesperson told PEOPLE. "The Franchisee of this location is addressing the situation with his team, manager, and Team Member to ensure everyone involved understands why this is not acceptable and won't happen again." The chain did not confirm at which location the incident occurred. As of publication, Burger King had not announced any specific disciplinary outcome for the employee involved.
According to PEOPLE, citing the National Museum of African American History and Culture, blackface began as a practice in the United States in the 1830s, when white performers wore blackface to imitate Africans enslaved on Southern plantations, caricaturing Black people as lazy, ignorant and cowardly. "Blackface is not simply a Halloween costume, a joke, or a harmless form of entertainment," Devine said. "It carries a deeply painful history rooted in racism, humiliation, discrimination, and the dehumanization of African Americans."
Source: Shavelle Devine's Facebook video
Published by GSM · USA (original Chinese edition)
Photo: 汉堡王门店资料图（田纳西州Ooltewah一家汉堡王餐厅，Harrison Keely摄，CC BY 4.0，经Wikimedia Commons；事发门店地点汉堡王未公布）
