Chili’s Apologizes And Removes Manager For Taking Away Texas Veterans Free Meal
Veterans Day was supposed to be a day for honoring the men and women who have served our country but for one veteran in Texas, his visit to a Cedar Hill, Texas Chili's restaurant turned into a dishonorable experience.
According to The Dallas Morning News, 47-year old Army veteran Ernest Walker visited Chili's for a free meal as part of a Veterans Day promotion with his service dog when he was approached by the manager of the restaurant and had his free meal removed. According to Walker, the manager was told by another guest that he was not a "real soldier" even after Walker showed him ID and discharge papers at the manager's request.
Walker says that he was first approached by an elderly man wearing a Donald Trump shirt who told him that when he served in Germany, blacks weren't allowed to serve there and minutes later, the manager arrived to question Walker about his service and his service dog.
After Walker shared his story on Facebook, his post quickly went viral with criticism and calls for a boycott. Chili's CEO Kelli Valade released a statement apologizing to Mr. Walker and said that they have "took swift action and immediately removed our manager from the restaurant". Valade went on to say that the company was working with Mr. Walker on a resolution "that promotes trust and healing".