Employees at a Cheesecake Factory in Miami, Florida, singled out and verbally attacked while making threatening gestures toward a black man who was dining with his girlfriend’s family On Mother’s Day, The reason? because he was wearing a “Make America Great Again” hat,

According to multiple witnesses interviewed by The Daily Wire. The incident on Mother’s Day started inside Dadeland Mall Cheesecake Factory when 22-year-old Eugenior Joseph was seated wearing his Make America Great Again hat.

According to the multiple witnesses and 22-year-old Eugenior’s own account, a woman employee at Dadeland Mall Cheesecake Factory walked up to him and started pointing at his MAGA hat, then she signalled other employees over.

“Her finger was literally on top of his head, we were all looking at her like ‘what is happening?'” one witness told The Daily Wire. “She was pointing at him, calling her other coworkers, telling them to look at this guy wearing a Make America Great Again hat.”

After the female employee signalled over approximately a dozen or so employees, they all approached the table and began making remarks about Eugenior’s MAGA hat, with some employee’s saying they would like to punch Joseph in the face. Witnesses also say that some of the Cheesecake Factory employees also referred to him as a “n**ger” when speaking to each other.

“So then all the employees started standing there, saying things out loud, like, ‘I’m going to knock his head in so hard his hat’s going to come off,” the witness continued.

One of the employees gave Joseph intimidating looks, clenching his fists and making hand gestures that appeared to indicate that he was ready to engage in a fistfight.

“He got behind me and another coworker came by and they were staring at each other and he fist bumped him and then he started looking at me, balling his fists, smacking his fists, trying to scare me,” Joseph told The Daily Wire.

Another witness that spoke to The Daily Wire said the group of Cheesecake Factory employees looked like a lynch mob and the mob couldn’t stand seeing a black man wearing a MAGA hat that showed support for president Trump.

Employees at the Dadeland Mall restaurant continued to mock and intimidate Joseph after went to use the restroom.

“I got up and went to the restroom, my girlfriend followed me, and as we were walking back, a group of [the employees] came out from the back and they just started clapping and yelling, and just screaming things at me,” Joseph says.

The situation was verified by many people that witnessed the abuse toward Joseph and one said that it was so traumatic and threatening that an elderly woman who was present had to take medication to calm herself down, the Daily Wire reports.

Witnesses said after the incident the family decided to leave the restaurant and was followed out by the manager who admitted to their actions and said to them one of the employee’s had been sent home for the day.

The family ran into police as they left the restaurant. They had been called to the scene who documented the incident in the police report but apparently didn’t file any charges, according to multiple witnesses.

As reported by Ryan Saavedra for the Daily Wire:

The Daily Wire contacted the Cheesecake Factory where the alleged incident took place and spoke to a manager who refused to answer any questions and instead recorded this reporter’s contact information and had a public relations firm representing the Cheesecake Factory reach out to this reporter. When this reporter brought up the incident and asked whether or not he could confirm that it took place in the restaurant, the manager’s tone became slightly hostile as he reiterated: “I’m going to have someone get in touch with you.”

Multiple video clips and photos were viewed by The Daily Wire that confirms the claims made by the witnesses about the number of employees appearing to stand around the table.

One of the photos showed to them was one of the men described by a witness as the being the one who made the threatening hand gestures toward Joseph and making a fist bump with another employee, which was described by at least three witnesses there on the day.

The Daily Wire reviewed another video that showed a young girl afraid of the hostile threats by The Cheesecake Factory employees and crying at the table.

More footage shows the family leaving the Cheesecake Factory restaurant and speaking to multiple Police officials who had arrived on scene. The footage shows Joseph in a state of shock over what had just transpired as other witnesses were visibly angry over the way he had just been treated.

Joseph says that he has not heard from anyone at The Cheesecake Factory that he wears the MAGA hat because he thinks Donald Trump “is a really good president,” adding that he is very disappointed that a black man can’t wear a hat to support the current president without being attacked for it.

The Cheesecake Factory has since released a statement regarding the incident.

“No guest should ever feel unwelcomed in one of our restaurants and we are taking this matter very seriously,” reads a statement obtained by the Daily Wire. “Upon learning of this incident, we immediately apologized to the guests in person. We are conducting an investigation and will take the appropriate corrective action.”

The Cheesecake Factory later confirmed in a Twitter response to Ann Coulter that the employees involved have been suspended pending an investigation.

No guest should ever feel unwelcome in one of our restaurants and we are taking this matter very seriously. Upon learning of this incident, we immediately apologized to the guests in person. The individuals involved have been suspended pending the results of our investigation. — Cheesecake Factory (@Cheesecake) 15 May 2018

Related