On December 15, 2024, parents were protesting outside Cracker Barrel in Waldorf, Maryland. The reason for the protest goes back to December 3, when a group of 11 students with disabilities and the staff of Charles County Public Schools (CCPS) were denied entry by Cracker Barrel.
According to Cracker Barrel, the reason why the group was denied entry was not related to the children's disabilities. They explained that they had staffing issues and the second dining room was partially closed.
However, the parents of the CCPS students were not happy with how the company handled the situation. Dustin Reed, one of the parents, initiated the protest which had dozens of people turning up.
What was the Cracker Barrel Protest about?
After the December 3 incident, a meeting was set up between Cracker Barrel and the parents of the CCPS students on December 9, 2024. Reed, one of the parents who organized the protest spoke to NBC affiliate WRC. He said,
"In the meeting that they had last Monday [Dec. 9] with us parents, they denied discrimination, told us that we're all going to have to agree to disagree and they’re sorry that we feel this way."
Reed added,
"There isn’t much Cracker Barrel can do now... They had their chance to correct their wrongs at the meeting corporate called for with us parents. They decided to deny, gaslight, and defend themselves instead of taking accountability and correcting."
Parents felt the need to stand up not only for their children, but for kids all around the world with disabilities. The protest at Waldorf, Maryland was also live-streamed on Facebook.
Reed's daughter, who is 7 years old was one of the students. He said,
"We are her voice, we are advocates... If they’re not heard, no change will happen...
I want awareness, I want discrimination to stop in all aspects... No one deserves that kind of treatment."
Other parents also spoke out about the mistreatment of their children. Andrew Blumhardt spoke to USA Today and told them what an employee said to his daughter. The employee used an object pronoun to refer to his daughter, who was in an electric wheelchair.
The protest turnout was "amazing" according to Dustin Reed. Many people came to support with posters and chanting slogans such as "Can we eat now?," "Treat us equally," "Self-determination," and "Shut them down".
The protest gave Reed hope, to which he responded
"With how well it went I would love to continue to help our children and their community be heard/stood up for... Our time to take a stand is now.”
Cracker Barrel: Response and steps taken by the company after the incident
A meeting was set up with the parents, staff, and CCPS leadership to discuss the incident on December 9, 2024. Cracker Barrel expressed that action was taken to deal with the December 3 incident. This included firing the location's general manager, as well as two employees.
Furthermore, the company claims to have conducted special training for its employees, although the exact training was not revealed to the parents or the press.
According to Cracker Barrel,
"Senior Cracker Barrel executives met...with leadership and teachers from the school as well as the parent community to hear their concerns directly... We also shared the actions we have taken and are taking to address recent missteps at that store location. These actions include completing an internal investigation with guest and employee interviews, separating three members of the store’s team, including the General Manager, moving forward with specialized training for all employees at this particular store, and bolstering the already robust training we provide to managers nationwide."
They also tried to shed some light on what happened on December 3, 2024,
"We strive to create a welcoming environment and great experience for guests of all abilities, and we have a zero-tolerance policy against any form of discrimination... We did not refuse service to this student group, but operational breakdowns caused by staffing shortages and poor communication on our part led us to fall well short of our service standards that day. This is unacceptable." - Cracker Barrel explained.
Additionally, the company also issued an apology and expressed that they would happily have the group at their restaurant.
"We apologize for not meeting our standards and failing to provide these students and teachers with the hospitality for which Cracker Barrel is known... We would be honored to host this student program if they will give us another chance, and we remain open to having an ongoing dialogue with the teachers and families about how we can best serve the community going forward."
Cracker Barrel has refused to comment on the protest that happened on December 15, 2024.
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After a good turnout at the protest, Dustin Reed said that this is just the beginning and there will be another protest held in 2025. He wishes to improve and make it accessible to everyone.
According to Reed, it is "too late" for the company to make amends with the group that faced discrimination
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