A Tennessee police officer has accused a local restaurant of making false assumptions about him and his family because of race.
Marcus Mosby and his wife, a high school principal, who are both Black, said they were asked to leave Houston’s restaurant on Aug. 20 because a manager said they smelled like marijuana. Mosby said other employees didn’t detect the smell.
“You would think when I advised her of my occupation, my wife’s occupation, you would think she would reassess what she thought. She didn’t want to hear it. She said, ‘You still have to leave,’ ” Mosby told FOX13.
Mosby, a police officer for nearly 28 years, said he felt humiliated and shocked by the manager’s accusation.
“She said, ‘There’s a strong odor of marijuana coming from your party in this area.’ I said, ‘Ma’am, we don’t smoke marijuana. You’re mistaken.’ She said, ‘I’ve gotten complaints. People have called and said they smell.’ I said, ‘Ma’am, no one has walked past us but you,’ ” Mosby said.
After getting another employee’s opinion, Mosby and his family refused to leave and were seated. The manager then apologized and said she was mistaken.
“I said, ‘Why did you just racially profile us?’ She said, ‘I’m sorry. That was just a bad mistake.’ I said, ‘How did you smell something no one else smelled?’ ‘I am so sorry.’ She kept being apologetic,” said Mosby.
Mosby posted details of the interaction on social media; other Black people chimed in and shared similar experiences.
“This happened to me when I had cousins here from Milwaukee,” one Facebook user wrote.
FOX13 reports that other businesses in the area have signs saying they would refuse service to patrons who smell like marijuana. Attorney Van Turner said businesses have some freedom on deciding who they want to patronize their businesses, but it shouldn’t be used to discriminate against a certain group of people.
“Say they say they’re kicking you out (of) the restaurant because you smell like marijuana, but it’s really because of your race or your gender or your sexual preference, or your religion. Then yes, that is very much a violation of the law,” said Turner.
Turner also said he has “heard of other issues in the past with Houston’s and other restaurants.”
Houston’s, headquartered in Phoenix, Arizona, is an upscale restaurant. It is part of the Hillstone Restaurant Group with locations in Arizona, California, Colorado, Florida, Georgia, Louisiana, Maryland, New Jersey, New York and Texas.
In October 2017, Atlanta rappers T.I. and Killer Mike led a boycott against an Atlanta-area Houston’s restaurant after a woman claimed restaurant staff refused to seat her large party despite seating other parties of the same size.
There is only one Houston’s location in Tennessee on Popular Avenue in Memphis, where the incident occurred. The restaurant’s general manager acknowledged the manager’s error and indicated that Mosby and his family received a complimentary meal.
“Mr. Mosby dined with us Saturday with his family. When we detect the strong presence of marijuana with arriving guests, we do refuse service as the odor can affect others’ dining,” the general manager said in a statement. “We made a mistake in attributing the odor to Mr. Mosby’s party and apologized. We were happy to welcome him in and take care of his experience on us on Saturday.”
But Mosby said the experience left a bad taste in his mouth.
“I don’t plan on patronizing this establishment anymore,” he said.
