Image by Quartzla from Pixabay

Like Us on Facebook

McDonald's China apologies to the public after one of its restaurants banned black people from entering its premises. The sign that expressly showed that black people are forbidden inside its Guangzhou store received negative backlash from the public that the company is in damage control mode.

According to CNN Business, the note outside of McDonald's Guangzhou outlet read, "Notice: We've been informed that from now on black people are not allowed to enter the restaurant. For the sake of your health consciously notify the local police for medical isolation..." The notice received tremendous backlash from the public that the company declared a public apology as a part of its damage control strategy.

In a statement, the company claimed that the sign did not represent the inclusive values of McDonald's and that it was effectively removed in the Guangzhou outlet. The store was also temporarily closed down due to the issue.

Racial tensions between Africans and Guangzhou locals have been emanating in recent weeks. There were warnings from Chinese officials about the rising number of imported coronavirus cases caused by anti-foreigner sentiment. The report revealed that Africans in the city have been evicted from their homes by landlords and have been denied access to hotels for shelter despite the Africans' claim that they have had no recent travel history or known contact with positive patients.

The company claimed that the closure of the store was a move that would further educate its managers and employees to abide by McDonald's values including serving all members of the Chinese community without racial discrimination.

The report also showed that Guangzhou houses the largest African community in China. The Africans who reside in the city were found to have short-term business visas and travel to the country several times a year making it difficult for the locality to calculate the African population. In 2017, Guangzhou reported that about 320,000 Africans went and left China through the city.

The Guangdong provincial government responded to the concerns about discrimination and referred to Africans as good friends, business partners, and brothers of the Chinese population. It also manifested that the locality is working promptly to improve their business operation.

The racial discrimination issue was not the first for McDonald's. Last November, the company pulled an ad in Portugal that red "Sunday Bloody Sundae" to promote a Halloween product. The root word Blood Sunday was about a historic event where British soldiers killed unarmed protestors in Ireland that resulted in 14 casualties.

TagsMcDonald, Apologize, racist