On The Front Lines
Institute Files Discrimination Suit Against Hotel Chain on Behalf of Teddy Riley, Grammy Award-Winning Black Musician
_______________________________________Rutherford Institute Files Racial Discrimination Suit Against Hilton Hotel Chain On Behalf Of Teddy Riley, Grammy Award-Winning Black Musician
WILMINGTON, Del.--Thomas S. Neuberger, an affiliate attorney for The Rutherford Institute, has filed a racial discrimination suit in the U. S. District Court of Delaware on behalf of Edward T. Riley, a.k.a. Teddy Riley, an award-winning African-American music producer, song writer and musician who, along with other African-American companions, was denied rental of a room at the Hampton Inn in Seaford, Del., a franchise of the Hilton Hotels Corp. Institute attorneys charge the Hilton Hotels Corp. with intentionally discriminating against Riley and his companions because of their race in violation of the Civil Rights Acts, which were designed to remove racial prejudice from American life. Riley is a nationally and internationally renowned music producer and artist. Although primarily known for his work with urban artists, Riley has worked with artists as varied as Aretha Franklin, Michael Jackson, Whitney Houston, Mariah Carey, N'SYNC, Mary J. Blige and the Rolling Stones, and has been responsible for 30 platinum and multi-platinum records and 20 gold records. He received two Grammy Awards and produced songs for the movies How the Grinch Stole Christmas, Do the Right Thing, and New Jack City.
On April 3, 2002, Riley and his co-workers were traveling by bus through Delaware. At about 11:30 pm, they stopped at the Hampton Inn in Seaford to use the restroom. The complaint alleges that when the night manager on duty saw Riley and his African-American companions approaching the door to the hotel, he locked and barred it, refusing their entreaties to use the rest room under the pretext that only guests could use the restrooms. When Riley asked if he could book a room for the night, the manager stated that the hotel was full. However, one glance around the sparsely populated parking lot indicated to Riley that the hotel was not fully booked, which was confirmed when Riley telephoned the Hampton Inn toll-free reservation line and made a confirmed reservation for the hotel. Still, the night manager refused to unlock the doors and honor Riley's room reservation. Instead, he called the Seaford Police to have Riley and his companions arrested for disorderly conduct. After investigating the matter, the police informed the night manager that his conduct was unlawful. Undeterred, the man continued to refuse service to Riley and his companions, stating that he "didn't like the way they looked." Institute attorneys charge that as a result of his encounter with blatant discrimination, many of Riley's musical projects and plans were either derailed or cancelled, costing him dearly in income. For example, Riley's feelings of despondency at being a victim of racial discrimination caused him to cancel a concert tour at a financial loss for the tour of roughly $800,000 to $900,000. Riley also lost a $1.5 million dollar contract with Dreamworks.
"Cases like these are a sad reminder that racial discrimination is still a terrible problem in America," said John W. Whitehead, president of The Rutherford Institute. "Despite Mr. Riley's achievements, he was allegedly treated no differently than a black man trying to use a 'whites only' restroom in the 1950's. We hope this lawsuit sends a clear message that this kind of racial discrimination will not be tolerated."
The Rutherford Institute is an international, nonprofit civil liberties organization committed to defending constitutional and human rights.
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