Joe's Crab Shack is under fire for using a photograph of a lynching as decor

USA Today

Joe's Crab Shack is under fire for displaying a photograph of a lynching at one of its restaurants. 

The photo depicts two black men being lynched by a white mob in Texas. The picture's title reads: "Hanging at Groesbeck, Texas, on April 12th, 1895." At the top, a caption reads, "All I said was that I didn't like the gumbo."

The photo was embedded in a dining table as a decoration at a Joe's Crab Shack in Roseville, Minnesota, according to the Minneapolis NAACP. It was discovered by diners Tyrone Williams and Chauntyll Allen on Wednesday evening. 

"Seeing a picture of two black men being lynched was the last thing that I expected to see at what was supposed to be a family-friendly restaurant," Allen said in a statement.

Williams and Allen brought their concerns over the photo to restaurant management.

"Although the manager was apologetic about the lynching depiction, that does not change the fact that this sickening image of black men being lynched was intentionally embedded inside of a table," Williams said in a statement. "This type of blatant racism should not be tolerated in this country, or in our local and national eating establishments. I have felt sick to my stomach and stressed out since seeing that image on the table where I was planning to eat my food."

USA TodayThe Minneapolis NAACP is demanding a public apology from Joe's Crab Shack, as well the immediate removal of any racially offensive imagery from its restaurants. It's also asking that the company make a donation to a local organization that benefits African American youths. 

David Catalano, COO of Joe's Crab Shack's parent company, Ignite Restaurant Group, says the image has been removed from the restaurant.

“We understand one of the photos used in our table décor at our Joe’s Crab Shack location in Roseville, MN was offensive," Catalano said in a statement. "We take this matter very seriously, and the photo in question was immediately removed. We sincerely apologize to our guests who were disturbed by the image and we look forward to continuing to serve the Roseville community."

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