An accusation of racial profiling against AMC's Ahwatukee theater by a Phoenix man who posted cellphone videos of his encounter has sparked an outcry on social media and prompted some to call for a boycott of the movie-theater chain.

Larry Shelton, a movie-theater patron, says he was asked to leave the theater after being accused of not paying for a ticket and refusing to show his ticket to a security guard who approached him in the theater on Saturday.

One video taken by Shelton and posted on his Facebook page showed him talking to the security guard for a few minutes and asking why he was being asked to leave. He tells the guard to review security footage, which he said would prove that he purchased his ticket and did not sneak through an exit door to watch the movie without paying.

The theater's manager briefly appears before the video ends. A second video, which had gotten nearly 570,000 views as of Tuesday evening, shows two police officers inside of the theater before Shelton makes his way out alongside the AMC staff members, who had not been identified as of Tuesday evening.

In the theater hallway, an exchange ensues among the men, which eventually includes one more law-enforcement officer who shows up on the scene.

The manager says again that he believes Shelton sneaked into the theater, and Shelton then showed both the manager and the police his ticket showing he paid to watch that movie. He tells them he had gone to a restroom then to the concession stand to refill his drink.

The police officers state that no crime was committed and that they cannot get involved in a civil dispute. Shelton makes his way out of the theater, asking for a refund on the way out. The manager says he cannot issue a refund because Shelton violated the theater's code of conduct by having his cellphone light on during the movie through his recording of the incident.

A group of protesters was expected to gather outside the theater at 7 p.m. Tuesday to call for a boycott of the incident, but the event never materialized.

Shelton and Katt McKinney, a Black Lives Matter activist, were at a business near the theater to discuss their dissatisfaction with the way AMC handled the incident.

Shelton said AMC sent him an email apologizing for the incident and offered him vouchers for a free movie, soda and popcorn to smooth things over.

He called it "insulting," and suggested the manager be fired and more diversity training be implemented.

"AMC needs to train their people like they want to be treated," he said. "If you treat people like you want to be treated, this would have never happened. Now I have the shame of people who were in the theater, if they see me out, I'm going to be that guy who police took out of the theater, who snuck in there in their minds because they don't know what really happened.

"That's embarassing and that makes you feel ashamed."

Shelton said the video didn't show the manager initially approaching him as he walked back toward the theater after using the restroom and refilling his soda about an hour into the movie. He said the manager did not ask to see his ticket, but instead immediately accused him of sneaking in.

He said if the manager had calmly asked to see his ticket, he would have immediately done so without further incident.

McKinney said they are hoping to prompt a national boycott of AMC theaters through the incident.

"A lot of people will not be going to AMC until they address this, and popcorn and a drink is not going to do it," she said.

She is also asking AMC to release information pertaining to how many employees of color they have and how many people of color are in leadership positions at the company.

Destiny Russell, 21, who showed up for the protest before learning it wasn't occurring, said she would be boycotting the theater until they responded more appropriately to the situation.

"I've been coming to AMC for a very long time, and after watching the video they have definitely lost my loyalty," she said. "It's very disappointing to see something like this happen."

Russell said she does believe the incident was prompted by racism, and said that she's previously been permitted to use the theater's restroom without purchasing a ticket for a movie.

Russell showed up to the protest before leaving once no one else arrived. She said she's known Shelton for about a year and wanted to support him in his fight against the theater chain.

"Larry is a very genuine and kind human being, and I don't believe he deserved the treatment that he received at AMC movie theaters," she said.

She said she hopes the incident will spark more discussion about the role racism plays in everyday interactions.

"I hope that people are more aware of these kinds of incidents happening and to be aware that you or the person next to you might be receiving different treatment based on their race," she said.

Stephen Kessen, 29, also showed up to the theater for the protest but said he does not believe the incident was racist.

He said he believed Shelton could have avoided the incident by immediately showing his ticket once the manager accused him of sneaking in.

"I hate to be that guy, but how hard is it to produce a ticket?" he said. "I hate to say it but I think that Larry has the lion's share of the blame."

Kessen said he hoped the Tuesday night event would give him more information.

"I just want to hear what he (Shelton) has to say because eight minutes worth of video doesn't say much," he said.

AMC officials responded to The Arizona Republic with a prepared statement about the incident:

"AMC deeply regrets that this avoidable situation occurred. Based on our initial investigation, including interviews with the theatre staff and our outreach to the guest, this situation could have been handled differently to minimize frustration, and we’ve offered our sincere apologies to Mr. Shelton.

"Regarding what transpired, a member of the theatre team, acting on information about unauthorized access to the theatre through an exit door, approached a guest in the area, who was reentering an auditorium mid-movie. When the guest declined to show his ticket stub, the manager called for security, and when the guest again declined to show his ticket stub or leave the auditorium, the theatre called the police. Once police arrived, the guest produced his ticket.

"We understand that Mr. Shelton feels he was treated with bias. Equality is of the utmost importance to AMC, which is why unconscious bias training is required for all AMC management associates, and we will be reinforcing that training at this theatre."

Reach the reporter at bfrank@arizonarepublic.com or follow her on Twitter @brieannafrank.

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