Customer files human rights complaint after Faribault Burger King blackface video

The woman who recorded an employee in blackface at a Faribault Burger King last month has filed charges with the Minnesota Department of Human Rights (MDHR).

A letter from the woman’s lawyer said she went through the drive-through on Oct. 31 and encountered an employee covered in dark makeup.

When she questioned the employee, they said, “I’m just Black today,” and later said, “I just wanted to be Black.”

Complaints filed with MDHR are civil matters, not criminal. MDHR acts as a neutral agency that investigates the alleged human rights violations. The burden of proof in those cases is typically less than what is required in criminal cases.

“This should never have happened,” the customer said in a statement through her lawyer. “Blackface is not simply a Halloween costume, a joke, or a harmless form of entertainment — it carries a deeply painful history...