A white Burger King employee in Minnesota was filmed working a Halloween drive-thru shift in blackface, and the chain is now responding.
The video showed a Black customer asking the worker about her appearance. The footage spread widely online after it was posted to Facebook. Burger King said it takes the matter seriously.
A Customer Filmed the Drive-Thru Encounter
The customer Shavelle Devine recorded the exchange at the drive-thru window on October 31 and posted it to Facebook. The clip shows a white employee in a Burger King uniform, cap and headset, with dark makeup covering her face.
Reports identified the restaurant as a location in Faribault, Minnesota, though Burger King has not confirmed the address. The video has been viewed about 200,000 times on Facebook alone.
The Employee Explained Her Costume
Early in the clip, Devine asked the employee to repeat for the camera what she had told her.
“I’m just Black today,” the employee said.
When Devine asked whether the employee thought the look was okay, the worker said it was fine “as long as you have a good heart.” Devine asked whether her intentions were good, and the employee nodded.
Devine then asked whether that meant she supported Black Lives Matter. “Well, no, I just wanted to be Black,” the employee replied.
Devine pressed her further, asking, “Do you know the struggles that we go through as Black people?” The employee laughed, apologized and gave conflicting answers before saying she did not know.
Burger King Responded
Burger King released a statement on Sunday, November 1, the day after Halloween, as the video continued to spread.
“We are aware of the video and take the matter very seriously,” the company said.
It said the franchisee was addressing the situation with the employee, her manager and the team. The goal, according to the statement, was to ensure everyone understood why the behavior was unacceptable and would not happen again.
Reports said Burger King’s corporate office contacted the franchise owner and that the matter was being handled in-house. Devine said the behavior was unacceptable and said she was disappointed in the company’s response, per People.
How Viewers Reacted
Many commenters questioned how the employee was allowed to clock in wearing the makeup.
“The fact that she was allowed to clock in and work… that’s also a problem,” a viewer noted.
Another viewer said, “How and why was she not immediately sent home?”
“Be nice, educate with love,” one more viewer added.
Another commenter noted that Burger King seems to turn up often in controversies like this one, with one viewer stating, “Very interested in Burger King’s policies.”
