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There were no happy meals for the folks driving up to this Orlando, Florida McDonalds. The behavior in this incident is so egregious McDonalds attendant Kristy Perez, in responding to customer Ryan Snyder’s query at the drive-thru that they weren’t given a receipt or change — responded by going homophobic-ballistic against her co-worker.
“That stupid faggot doesn’t know how to do his job,” Perez allegedly said, according to a lawsuit filed by Snyder after the December 2010 incident (via South Florida Gay News). “He just came out of the closet.”
After Snyder, who is gay, told her that he found the remark offensive, he claims that Perez became irate, ultimately assaulting him, part of which was caught on video (see below). On June 26, Perez was sentenced to 100 hours of community service and three years probation on charges of battery and burglary in connection with the incident.
If that wasn’t bad enough, Snyder expressed his displeasure at the anti-gay fracas occurring and said ”Ma’am I am gay. How can you say stuff like that?” Apparently, the McDonalds customer service training manual went out the window for Perez and…
Perez made her way out of the restaurant and chased the car, so Danielle [Smith, the driver of the car] stopped. Perez proceeded to bang on the window, which Danielle drew down. This was when Perez lunged into the car, reaching into Heidi’s lap, where the bag of food was sitting.
“We all went into hysterics, not knowing what to do,” Snyder said. Danielle found a way to push Perez out of the car and drove off, when Perez kicked the car and Danielle stopped again.
“She came to the car and tried to grab the food out of my hand. Everything was happening so fast — I just couldn’t believe it,” Heidi told SFGN. “I was freaking out.”
But wait, there’s more. How about this supervisory protocol? Is it the Ronald McDonald standard operating procedure to say this?
Snyder called 911, but a McDonalds manager reportedly urged Perez to go “home before police get here” and she left, according to the lawsuit. Perez allegedly failed to show up for work ever again; a year later, she was allegedly caught speeding in a car and was charged in the Snyder case. She pled no contest in the Snyder case, but was not charged with a hate crime, according to the South Florida Gay News. She’s no longer employed by McDonalds, according to company spokeswoman Julie Pottebaum.
Here are a few of the claims in the lawsuit (I have to admit this is pretty hilarious reading):
Negligent hiring
McDonalds “owed a duty” to customers like to Snyder to hire “competent, qualified and safe employees.” The lawsuit alleges that McDonalds didn’t fulfill his duty by “hiring employees who were, and are, incompetent, unfit for employment in the food service or any industry, and dangerous.”
Negligent supervision
The lawsuit alleged that McDonalds also failed in its capacity of supervision over its employees, and should have known that employees like Perez “posed a danger to [their] customers and public-at-large.” This supervisory negligence led to Snyder’s damages, including bodily injury, pain and suffering, mental anguish, humiliation, anxiety, fear, loss of enjoyment of life, and medical expenses, according to the lawsuit.
Negligent retention
On top of poor judgment, lack of managerial skills, hostility, violent tendencies, unpredictability, and unfitness for the job, the lawsuit alleged that McDonalds should have known of Perez’s homophobic nature.
Um, how exactly is McDonalds going to weed out the homophobes in the interview?
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Q: “We have a very diverse customer base here at this McDonalds. We happily serve a broad swath of people here. Do you foresee having any problems serving any person cheerfully? Do you see yourself, or your personal views, getting in the way of providing excellent customer service to any customers here? Are you prejudiced against any ‘type’ of person and, if so, who?”
Not hard.
You’re forgetting that bigots never actually think they’re prejudiced.
A couple of observations: This kind of thing has a tendency to happen when you have people in official positions advocating and defending hatred. I’m sure the right wing will jump to her defense and claim her “religious freedom is being infringed upon” or something.
Also, this is just another reason to stay away from McDonald’s, (if the polyvinylchloride “food” isn’t enough of a deterrent). The merits of the lawsuit,(or lack thereof), aside, her manager suggesting she go home, “before the police get (there)”, not only seems actionable civilly but maybe prosecutable criminally.
Highly doubtful that the individuals in this case took their behavior/attitude cues from “official positions.” Rampant homophobia in the African American community is the more likely culprit.
World full of angry and frustrated people making two dollars an hour getting no coherent story or direction from progressive political forces about why it is the way it is or how to unite to change it. Instead turning on one another.
Liberals AND conservatives seeking personal rather than systemic explanations, again and again find themselves hating on rather than figuring out how to unite with downtrodden people (or only doing it in restrictive identitarian fashion) in order to create change.
You probably can’t presume the presence or absence of homophobia or other attitudinal anomalies at the point of hiring, even with an interview. But you can require an orientation training before assumption of duties. I have worked for companies that deal with the public and this is how it was handled. Absolutely no question left unanswered on what was expected, violation being cause for immediate dismissal.
Furthermore, an annual review was mandated for all employees. Not only would that subordinate be fired, probably a lot sooner, but that superior who advised her to get out before the cops came would also be out on his or her ass.
That’s one of the weirdest things I’ve ever seen.
What I can’t figure out if why the driver stopped for this psycho?
And how did Snyder get out of the cars. It’s rather confusing that he wound up back in the restaurant before…after? the clerk hit him.
Leave it to Florida. The odd tend to gravitate there, I’ve noticed.
Yeah, somebody’s going to be charged with obstruction there
Who’s Heidi?
Nice big juicy lawsuit….squeeze them dry.
BTW the founder of Mcdonalds and his family are all crazy, hateful catholics….not that there’s any other kind.
No prejudice around here….
That’s an excellent point, Margaret, and absolutely true. It has been well documented that hate crimes increase when particular groups are targeted by politicians.
Hate crimes against Latinos spiked after the Republicans sought to distract attention from the Iraq war by–out of the blue–making illegal immigration a social wedge issue in 2006. Similarly, hate crimes against homosexuals have increased significantly in recent years thanks to Republican hate over same-sex marriage and other “special rights” (equal rights) for gays.
When people in power engage in bigotry, the petty bigots in the rest of society feel empowered and legitimized to express their hatred. The rot starts at the top.
it’s ok to hate the haters, otherwise the haters win
I’m an atheist from a Catholic family that grew up in a heavily Catholic area. Your statement reminds me of someone saying, “lazy, criminal blacks, not that there’s any other kind.”
then by definition you are not a catholic…..just keep defending those “good” catholics who financially support those that promote discrimination against me.