‘Fast and Furious’ star Tyrese Gibson sues Home Depot for $1M, alleges racial profiling
Actor Tyrese Gibson and two other plaintiffs are suing Home Depot, seeking over $1 million in damages for what they call “outrageous discriminatory mistreatment and consumer racial profiling,” according to the lawsuit.
The 44-year-old “Fast and Furious” star allegedly paid a visit to a store in West Hills, California, back in February, accompanied by two associates, Eric Mora and Manuel Hernandez, who work for Gibson as construction contractors, reports People.
Their lawsuit claims that Gibson left the store when fans began to notice him, and requested Mora and Hernandez complete a purchase while he waited outside in his vehicle. But when the men attempted to check out, they allege “the cashier refused to complete the purchase” using Gibson’s credit card — even after Gibson came back into the store and attempted to give his authorization.
A portion of the interaction was captured on video and later posted on the internet. It shows Tyrese talking to the cashier on FaceTime from outside and later confronting multiple workers in the store about the incident.
“The cashier gave no reasonable explanation other than repeating ‘store policy’ and demanded to see a form of identification,” the lawsuit adds. “The manager refused to speak with Gibson in person. It was only after significant heated discussion with the cashier that Gibson was finally able to complete the transaction.”
The lawsuit also claims the store’s employees “purposely interfered with and refused to process the transaction based on their groundless suspicion of Gibson, Mora and Hernandez arising from their skin color, and in the case of Mora and Hernandez, their national origin.”
Now, the three seek over $1 million in damages — an estimate of the amount Gibson claims he has spent at various Home Depot locations throughout his lifetime.
They are also asking for “a declaratory judgment declaring that” Home Depot violated California’s Unruh Civil Rights Act, which protects against discrimination by all businesses in the state.
A Home Depot spokesperson said in a statement Thursday that “diversity and respect for all people are core to who we are, and we do not tolerate discrimination in any form.”
“We value Mr. Gibson as a customer, and in the months since this happened, we’ve reached out to him and his attorneys several times to try to resolve his concerns,” the statement added.
