Three Black individuals who say they spend greater than $1 million a yr on Louis Vuitton products have filed a lawsuit against the designer brand, accusing the corporate of banning them from selling their products in its stores for “shopping while Black,” based on the lawsuit obtained by Atlanta Black Star.

Tracy Renee Williams was joined by her daughter, Brandi Williams, and a man named Kristopher Enoch, who’re plaintiffs within the lawsuit filed Friday in federal court in California.

The lawsuit states that in September 2022, Tracy ordered $50,000 price of merchandise from a Louis Vuitton store in Costa Mesa, California, to be delivered to her home in October 2022, but reportedly received an email from the corporate on September 29, 2022 with the next message:

After receiving the e-mail, Tracy entered a Louis Vuitton store in Beverly Hills and was immediately thrown out under threat of arrest. A couple of days later, she sent her white assistant to make the acquisition and was capable of achieve this without incident, the lawsuit said.

“On the contrary, Louis Vuitton employees treated him with respect, and even when the assistant stated he would pay for the items in cash (and did pay) several thousand dollars, he was not otherwise prevented from making the purchase,” the lawsuit reads.

The lawsuit also alleges that Tracy not only didn’t receive the $50,000 price of merchandise she ordered, but she also never received a refund.

As explained within the lawsuit, the opposite two defendants received similar emails banning them from their stores, but without providing the actual reason for the ban.

However, when Brandi entered a Louis Vuitton store in Chicago in July 2023, the lawsuit claims that a white store manager kicked her out, falsely accusing her of spending “drug money” in the shop. The lawsuit alleges that the plaintiffs often made purchases with money.

Shortly thereafter, Brandi gave her non-Black friend a gift card to make the acquisition for her, and her friend was allowed to make the acquisition.

However, Brandi later received a call from a Chicago store worker, whom she assumed was the manager, who told her the acquisition was “illegal” and that she needed to return the items to the shop.

The lawsuit doesn’t mention whether the lady returned the item, but says she then visited a Louis Vuitton store in New Orleans, where she was ordered to go away or threatened with arrest.

A 3rd plaintiff, Enoch, received an email saying he had been blocked after attempting to make a purchase for Tracy, based on the lawsuit.

Enoch was in a Beverly Hills store on September 29, 2022, when he noticed an worker showing a jacket to a non-Black customer. The customer was not fascinated about purchasing it, so the worker put the jacket at the back of the shop, where it was not visible to customers.

When Enoch told them he desired to buy a jacket for his friend Tracy, he was told he would not find a way to purchase the jacket. He received an email later that day.

The lawsuit, filed by Las Vegas attorney Jerold D. Freeman within the U.S. District Court for Central California, accuses Louis Vuitton of civil rights violations, racial discrimination, breach of contract and theft by failing to refund $50,000 she spent in September 2022 on merchandise she never received.

The lawsuit cites a January 2021 study titled “Racial Bias in Retail” that found that Black individuals are 2.5 times more likely than white customers to be treated unfairly due to color of their skin.

Even Oprah Winfrey, the richest black woman on the planet, admitted that she also experienced unfair treatment on the Louis Vuitton store in Rome.

Winfrey described the incident In video On her YouTube channel in 2015, she wrote that she desired to buy a Louis Vuitton bag for a friend, but was not allowed because she was not Italian.

“This bag is for Italians; only for Italians,” she quoted the words of an Italian saleswoman.

“Maybe you’ll be able to go to your country and find the bag there.”

A federal lawsuit alleges that of the five districts used to elect officials in DeSoto County, Mississippi, all discriminate against black Mississippians. The Legal Defense Fund (LDF), the ACLU of Mississippi, and Harvard Election Law are plaintiffs within the lawsuit, and the lawsuit was filed on behalf of two voters within the county, in addition to Delta Sigma Theta Sorority Inc. The lawsuit was filed within the Northern District of Mississippi on September 12.

According to , although 32% of DeSoto County residents are black, not one of the county’s 25 elected officials are black. These positions include: county supervisors, district court judges, law enforcement officials, school board members and election commissioners.

According to Legal Defense Foundation Press ReleaseLDF leaders consider the division of constituencies into wards is racially discriminatory.

As stated in a press release by Amir Badat, LDF special counsel for voting, “Black voters in DeSoto County deserve full and fair participation in the democratic process to ensure their interests are represented and their communities are considered,” Badat said.

Badat continued, “The racially discriminatory DeSoto County redistricting plan deprives Black DeSoto residents of their fundamental right to elect representatives who invest in their unique needs. This dangerously impacts the quality of life of Black DeSoto residents… We will work to protect the rights of Black DeSoto residents to participate equitably in this democracy and to elect governing bodies that best represent the interests of their community.”

Daniel Hessel, an attorney and clinical lecturer on the Harvard Election Law Clinic, agreed with Badat’s assessment, saying in a press release that “DeSoto County’s election district map fractures the county’s black community by depriving black voters of a voice in government. Black voters in DeSoto County are entitled to fair maps to ensure their needs and interests are reflected in the five offices elected on these district lines.”

The fastest-growing county in Mississippi deserves fair representation, in keeping with Jarvis Dortch, executive director of the ACLU of Mississippi. “DeSoto County is the fastest-growing county in Mississippi. Individuals and families who move to our state deserve fair and equitable representation in their local government,” Dortch said.

Dortch continued, “Unfortunately, the current Supervisor district boundaries are drawn to favor white voters and disadvantage voters of color. The community will only thrive when all voices are heard and some voices do not count more than others.”

This introduction to the lawsuit immediately mentions the indisputable fact that despite DeSoto County’s significant black population, no black person has been elected in greater than twenty years. He also says that previous county plans have divided the black community, weakening the political power of black residents in DeSoto County.

“Despite DeSoto County’s large black population, no black person has been elected to county office in at least two decades, and candidates elected by the black community have rarely been elected.”

The lawsuit suggests it is feasible and helpful to redraw the maps in order that black and white residents of the county can share power.

“A district map could be drawn that follows traditional districting rules and includes a reasonably configured district in which black residents make up a majority of the population. Such a map would give black voters the opportunity to choose their preferred candidate as one of five officials in each of the five county offices currently covered by Plan 2022.”

According to Charles Taylor, executive director of the Mississippi State Conference of the NAACP, “solving the injustice in DeSoto County starts with fair election mapping and access to the ballot box,” Taylor said.

He concluded: “Participation and representation are fundamental rights guaranteed by democracy, yet the county’s black citizens have long been deprived of these rights by office holders.”