Two African American men have been trying to file a federal discrimination lawsuit against a local restaurant after claiming they were tossed from the premises after refusing to give up their seats at the bar for two white women.
According to the Atlanta Journal-Constitution, former NBA all-star Joe Barry Carroll and Atlanta lawyer Joseph Shaw were enjoying drinks and bar food at The Tavern at Phipps early one evening when they were repeatedly asked to give up their seats to two white women patrons.
Carroll and Shaw politely declined, because they had not finished eating. They noticed the Tavern’s employees did not ask any white men to move and also saw some empty seats at the bar. About 20 minutes later, an Atlanta Police officer summoned by Tavern management escorted Carroll and Shaw out of the Phipps Plaza restaurant.
The Aug. 11, 2006, incident is alleged in federal lawsuits filed by the two men who say they were humiliated by the episode and contend The Tavern violated civil rights public accommodation laws. After almost two years of pretrial litigation, a federal judge must now decide whether the cases should go to trial.
Gerry Weber, one of Carroll’s lawyers, contends the plaintiffs have documented a racially discriminatory practice used by Tavern management, which thought the restaurant would be more attractive to white patrons if black customers were moved out of the way.
The Tavern, however, says the suits should be dismissed because the restaurant did nothing wrong.
