A Perris woman who said she felt humiliated and treated like a thief because skin and hair care products for black women like herself were in locked cases at her local Walmart has sued the retail giant, demanding that it change its practices.

Essie Grundy said at a news conference in Los Angeles on Friday, Jan. 26, that similar products designed for other races were on open shelves.

Grundy filed the lawsuit Friday in Superior Court in Riverside County. The lawsuit alleges that Walmart is violating California’s anti-discrimination legislation known as the Unruh Civil Rights Act. She is represented by noted civil rights attorney Gloria Allred of Allred Maroko Goldberg of Los Angeles.

Grundy said that on Jan. 12, she went to the Walmart at 1800 N. Perris Blvd. and discovered that she had to have an employee open a case to get a skin cream. She asked an employee why the cream was locked up. The employee said it was a directive from corporate headquarters, Grundy said.

She also said that she was told the employee had to carry the product to the cash register before she could touch it.

Grundy said she encountered the same policy on three subsequent visits.

“I was angry, sad, frustrated, and humiliated all at the same time,” she said. “I felt that I was being treated as a person who might be a thief.”

Retailers, because of the threat posed by petty shoplifters and high-dollar organized retail crime rings, have locked away often-stolen products including razors and baby formula.

Walmart spokesman Charles Crowson said Friday that the stores make those decisions based on what’s most often taken at those locations.

“We do not tolerate discrimination of any kind at Walmart,” Crowson wrote in an email.

“We’re sensitive to this situation and also understand, like other retailers, that some products such as electronics, automotive, cosmetics and other personal care products are subject to additional security. Those determinations are made on a store-by-store basis using data supporting the need for the heightened measures. While we’ve yet to review a complaint, we take this situation seriously and look forward to addressing it with the court.”