Bucky’s Clerk Fired
A Bucky’s Gas Station employee in Naperville has been fired after a video of the clerk questioning a customer citizenship went viral. The minute long clip shows a Bucky’s employee telling several Hispanic women to “…go back to their country”.
The women left but shortly returned, at that point the clerk and a customer in line told them to leave.
Carolina Buitron was addressed in the second video. She joined a protest group yesterday asking for an apology from Bucky’s.
What The Women in The Video Feel
“I do feel like it has a lot to do with Trump and how people are acting out against Hispanics and different communities,” said Buitron. “It’s not fair because we’re not doing anything to harm you.”
Buitron also said she believes the clerk isn’t fit for his job and would like an apology from Bucky’s.
The Facebook post had been viewed over half a million times at the time of this recording. Some say the discrimination the women faced is all too familiar.
“It reminded a lot of what my family used to go through when I was younger because I’m a daughter of immigrant parents,” said Sandra Gonzalez, the immigrant and refugee program director at Indivisible Aurora. “Seeing that and the similarities kind of brought some flashbacks. And I thought it was important that this not continue.”
Gonzalez and others organized the protest.
What’s Being Done in The Aftermath?
Bucky’s released a statement to several news outlets, saying “The comments of this associate are not reflective of the core values of Bucky’s convenience stores.”
Naperville officials have also seen the video, with Mayor Steve Chirico saying on his Facebook page “…hate has no home here in Naperville. Quite frankly, this type of behavior has no place in society at large. Our city prides itself on being open and inclusive to all.”
Naperville police department are currently investigating the situation.
The employee, who has not yet been named, is on suspension.
Naperville News 17’s Christian Canizal reports.
Since the publishing of this article Bucky’s has released an apology statement:
“The comments made by the associate are not reflective of the core values of Bucky’s Convenience Stores. We apologize to all of the individuals that were affected by the associate’s inappropriate behavior. As with all personnel matters, we did a full investigation and determined this individual’s behavior was unacceptable, and the individual is no longer employed by us. We do not tolerate any behavior that is insensitive to our valued customers. At Bucky’s, we pride ourselves on being a very diverse and inclusive company that treats all individuals with the utmost respect. We strive for our customers to have a great experience each time they stop at Bucky’s and expect that all of our associates provide excellent customer service at all times.”
