This past Friday night, a woman trying to use a manufacturer's coupon at her local CVS drugstore found herself the target of racism as the manager of the store called police accusing the woman of fraud.
According to The Chicago Sun-Times, while making a purchase at the CVS store on North Broadway in Chicago, Illinois, Camilla Hudson presented a manafacturer's coupon at checkout.
But the manager of the store, identified as Morry Matson, said he'd never seen a coupon like that and proceeded to call the police.
Wait – what? The police? About a coupon?
In a video posted to Facebook by Hudson, Matson can be seen shaking as he describes Hudson as an "African-American" to the police. During the conversation Hudson assures Matson, "Tell them that I will be waiting for them to arrive."
From Hudson's Facebook page post:
So, THIS just happened: I had the police called on me for attempting to use a coupon @ the CVS Pharmacy located at 6150 N. Broadway in Chicago! I stopped in to make a purchase using a coupon mailed to me by the product manufacturer, as replacement for problematic/defective product. The manager on duty said that he’d never seen a coupon like the one I had and said that he thought it was fraudulent. When I asked for his name and his title/role within the store, he became agitated and rude. When I pulled out my phone to document what happened and exactly what he’d said to me (AND how he’d said it!) he turned his back and walked away from me. When I followed him and demanded that he answer my question, he ran to the back of the store and slammed a door in my face. Meanwhile, the other manager, who’d been helping me initially, came running back to tell me that I’d better leave the store immediately, because he’d called the police.
Of course, I had ZERO concerns about the police being called. Apparently, they’d hung up on him the first time he called, so he had to call them back a second time, telling the 911 dispatcher that I was harassing them (which I have on video). Three tactical unit officers arrived and, after some conversation and documenting their names, badge numbers, etc., I eventually left the store. Needless to say, this is far from over. Life in these United States. Aargh.
The Sun-Times notes that Matson is currently running for alderman in the 48th Ward of Chicago.
On his campaign website, Matson promises “increased police presence throughout Alderman Matson’s 48th Ward.” Since this incident, Matson's website seems to have been pulled down.
He was a state delegate for President Donald Trump in the 2016 election and is president of the Log Cabin Republicans of Illinois, an LGBTQ conservative group.
Speaking of 'fraud,' the website BlockClubChicago took a look into Matson's own history and found that in 2013 he spearheaded an effort to build a waterfront walkway. But allegations of fraud arose when it was discovered pages and pages of signatures matched Matson's own handwriting.
Matson eventually admitted he had signed some of the signatures himself.
Hudson said in her post that there were three officers who showed up in response to Matson’s call, and she spoke with them before leaving the store. Chicago Police could not immediately respond to confirm.
CVS issued an apology to Hudson via BlockClubChicago, which read in part:
“We sincerely apologize to Ms. Hudson for her experience in one of our stores,” CVS said in a statement issued to Block Club Chicago. “Our Region Director in Chicago contacted Ms. Hudson as soon as we were made aware of this incident. CVS has begun an investigation and we will take any corrective action that is warranted to prevent it from happening again.
“CVS Pharmacy does not tolerate any practices that discriminate against any customer and we are committed to maintaining a welcoming and diverse environment in our stores,” the statement continued. “We have firm non-discrimination policies in place to help ensure that all customers are treated with respect and dignity. Profiling or any other type of discriminatory behavior is strictly prohibited.”
As much as most Conservative
As much as most Conservative people hate gays and believe they are going to hell for their 'sin', you would think they wouldn't support the Far Right Agenda. White people. SMH.