“I want to say this was not a witch hunt at all. This was nothing personal,” said Williams. “We have come too far as a community and as black people to have that n-word resurface without saying anything about it.”
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Williams had purchased the fish just 20 minutes before and had a receipt, however the situation in the store escalated and an employee allegedly used the disparaging term. The employee was later fired.
“We’re glad that decisive action was taken to terminate the employment of the employee who made those particular comments using the n-word,” said Derrick Foward, the local NAACP president.
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Store owner Rafet Faleh agreed to five terms to settle the dispute, including a public apology, which was offered Saturday by his attorney Mohamed Al-Hamdani.
“We are really, deeply sorry for what happened,” Al-Hamdani said. “That word does not belong anywhere in H & L stores or anywhere in our community. As minorities ourselves, we know what it feels like to be discriminated against. So I hope you will accept our apology that this is a first step toward healing.”
The market has been a part of Dayton for 70 years, Al-Hamdani said.
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The store agreed to other terms including a clear and posted return policy, providing cultural competency training for staff and giving back to two community centers, especially when students are returning to school and the holiday season.
The settlement also calls for the market to survey residents within a two-mile radius to gather community needs.
“We are on the verge, as we hear every day, of a food desert,” Foward said. “We cannot continue to have all stores leave the Dayton area. So we want to make certain our citizens who live in the Dayton area have the opportunity to go get fresh produce … and other items they need every day.”
Foward said he and Al-Hamdani counted close to 130 businesses that are owned by Arab families within the community and similar issues have simmered below the surface without boiling over.
“That’s something we are going to continue working on together down the road, Foward said.
Al-Hamdani said the settlement was not an end, but a beginning.
“These steps will hopefully take us in a new direction, not just for H & L, but hopefully other markets in the neighborhood, he said. “It’s about time we all come together to serve this community in a better way.”
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