T.J. Maxx responded to allegations from a young Black shopper who asserted that she was racially profiled at a store in Wisconsin, sparking massive outrage online.
She claimed that she and her boyfriend visited the store to shop for purses. As she was browsing the purse section, she began to pick up several handbags in anticipation of making multiple purchases when she saw a number of workers pointedly staring at her and her boyfriend.
“They’re very off-putting,” she explains before her boyfriend recounts what he saw in the store.
“The lady at the front was staring at us as soon as we walked in,” the young lady’s boyfriend states, adding that several employees also approached the couple in quick succession to ask whether they needed help. “The lady who was at the front, she starts standing by the door like trying to guard it.”
Madrid adds that she overheard nearby associates contacting each other through their radios about monitoring her and her boyfriend.
As the couple continued to browse the store, Madrid stated that employees kept staring at them, approaching them to offer help, and continued to guard the door even after they went to the checkout line.