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McDonald’s might want to finally fix the McFlurry Machine because a hefty fine might be coming their way.
In May 2021, media mogul and entrepreneur Byron Allen filed a lawsuit against fast food conglomerate, McDonald’s. Byron Allen’s media companies, Entertainment Studios and the Weather Group, believe that McDonald’s intentionally excluded them from general market budgeting. This infraction caused Entertainment Studios and The Weather Group to to lose out on critical advertising dollars. The lawsuit also alleges that in 2019, McDonald’s spent $1.6 billion on television advertising in the U.S., with $5 million, or less than one-third of 1%, going toward Black-owned media.
In late November 2021, the lawsuit was dismissed by U.S. District Federal Judge Fernando M. Olguin. Judge Olguin believed the Allen and his media companies failed to provide enough evidence that would support their claims. At the end of the proceedings, Judge Olguin provided the plaintiffs a chance to re-file the lawsuit. Allen and his media companies assured the court and McDonald’s that this case would not end there.
AND HERE WE ARE.
Byron Allen is another step closer to collecting $10 billion from McDonald’s.
Judge Olguin has made the decision to move Allen’s racial discrimination lawsuit against McDonald’s forward. On January 21, Judge Olguin blocked McDonald’s recent motion against Allen’s media companies. McDonald’s believed Allen’s media companies were improperly referencing materials outside the pleadings. Judge Olguin told McDonald’s to either respond to Allen’s lawsuit or to refile its motion no later than this Thursday, January 27. The day has come and McDonald’s and Allen’s media companies are set for another round of fighting.
Loretta Lynch, an attorney for McDonald’s, believes “there is no evidence to support their meritless case” and plans to see it dismissed in court again.
She even said the following about the plaintiffs in the matter.
This case is about revenue, not race, and was dismissed because plaintiffs have provided absolutely no factual basis for their claims.
Byron Allen truly believes the opposite.
We look forward to presenting our enormous evidence in court, which will prove the systemic racism at McDonald’s.
And I firmly believe the board at McDonald’s should fire the CEO Chris Kempczinski immediately.
Oddly enough the day the lawsuit was filed against McDonald’s, the fast food giant announced a new company wide initiative.
The plan pledged to increase its advertising spending over four years with companies owned by people from diverse backgrounds. Backgrounds that includes African Americans, Hispanics, Asian Americans, Pacific Islanders, women and LGTBQ individuals. Then in December 2021 the company announced a $250 million, five-year initiative to increase the number of minority-owned franchisees across the restaurant chain in the United States. This was after the original lawsuit claim was denied.
McDonald’s history of lawsuits describing racial discrimination didn’t start with Allen and his media companies.
For example in 2020, 77 Black former McDonald’s franchise owners filed a racial discrimination lawsuit against them.
The owners alleged that McDonald’s led them to less profitable restaurants. They believed that the company also didn’t give them rent relief and other financial support made available to white-owned franchises. This lawsuit happened in the mist of a public outcry for the resignation of McDonald’s CEO Chris Kempczinski.
The McDonald’s CEO sent texts to Chicago Mayor Lori Lightfoot blaming the parents of two children who where shot and killed. Texts like “with both, the parents failed those kids which I know is something you can’t say. Even harder to fix” were highly scrutinized. This 77-man lawsuit still hasn’t been resolved.
Byron Allen isn’t a stranger is to filing lawsuits against media companies trying to do him and his companies wrong. Allen filed a similar racial discrimination lawsuit against Charter Communications. Last year, Allen settled a $10 billion racial discrimination lawsuit against them.
