Ikea Serves Watermelon And Chicken On Juneteenth Menu, Faces Blacklash. Credit: rez-art and lenscap67
An attempt to honor Juneteenth by an Atlanta-based branch of the IKEA furniture chain went drastically wrong last week when the store released a menu that included fried chicken and watermelon.
The offensive Juneteenth menu was released to employees via an email from the store, employees told CBS46. Going on record anonymously out of fear of retaliation, employees also shared the email with the news station.
“To honor the perseverance of Black Americans and acknowledge the progress yet to be made, we observe Juneteenth on Saturday, June 19, 2021. We will also be showcasing a compilation of videos in honor of Juneteenth,” the email said. “Look out for a special menu on Saturday which will include: fried chicken, watermelon, mac n cheese, potato salad, collard greens, candied yams.”
It did not go over well as dozens of employees called out of work in protest following the email. “You cannot say serving watermelon on Juneteenth is a soul food menu when you don’t even know the history … they used to feed slaves watermelon during the slavery time,” one employee said. “It caused a lot of people to be upset. People actually wanted to quit, people wasn’t coming back to work.”
Once the store manager learned how upset some employees were, she sent an emailed apology. “It has come to our attention that the menu published for Juneteenth was not taken in the best light,” the follow-up email began. “I truly apologize if the menu came off as subjective. It was created with the best intentions by a few of our coworkers who believed they were representing their culture and tradition with these foods of celebration.”
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However, some employees said no Black employees were at the table when the menu was created. A spokesperson for the IKEA store refutes that report, telling TMZ Black co-workers were involved.
“We value our co-workers’ voices and changed the menu after receiving feedback that the foods that were selected are not reflective of the deeply meaningful traditional foods historically served as part of Juneteenth celebrations. We got it wrong and we sincerely apologize,” the spokesperson said.
This isn’t the first time companies, individuals and/or organizations have come under fire for serving menus rooted in racist stereotypes in an effort to connect with Black Americans. President Joe Biden’s campaign planned a “Fried Chicken Wednesday” in South Carolina when he was running for office in 2020, which aslo drew criticism.
In her apology email, the store manager also said they valued their employees’ voices and feedback. The store changed the Juneteenth menu to include mashed potatoes, collard greens, cornbread and meatloaf. They still served the fried chicken, mac and cheese and collard greens the following day, however.
The Sunday menu still offended both employees and customers alike. “They just delayed the menu by a day. Thinking that everyone who was upset by the Juneteenth menu stayed home on Juneteenth and wouldn’t notice, which just added insult to injury,” employees told CBS46.
“I’m just frankly disappointed in the learning process, you shouldn’t learn after you have insulted all of your black employees,” a customer added.
