Class-action lawyer takes interest in P&L dress code
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| J.D. Bell (center) and kin the night they were allegedly denied admittance to Mosaic |
Standing near the entrance to the KC Live! block, members of an extended African-American family described the discrimination they felt they encountered on a visit to the downtown entertainment district in August. The family is represented by superlawyer Arthur Benson, who says venues inside the district monitor racial composition in an effort to prevent the clientele mix from getting "too dark."
On Tuesday, Benson sent a letter to the Missouri Commission on Human Rights on behalf of Khiana Leapheart, a 34-year-old Kansas City, Missouri, resident. The letter states that Leapheart and six relatives celebrating a family reunion were prevented from entering Mosaic Lounge because the much-debated dress code was unfairly enforced.
A member of Leapheart's party, J.D. Bell III, said today that a door attendant at Mosaic asked him to tuck in his shirt. Bell says he complied but was still denied entrance, even as similarly dressed whites were allowed in the club.
Leatrice Ragsdale, who also attended the press conference, said the group of relatives received no explanation for Bell's continued denial of admittance. "There was no excuse," he said.
Benson accused the Cordish Co., the Power & Light District developer, which operates Mosaic through a subsidiary, of using its dress code to maintain "a certain level of minority participation above which they don't want to go."
Benson encouraged door workers and other former Power & Light personnel to come forward and confirm the allegation. He is also seeking to represent other individuals who can describe instances when they felt they received biased treatment at Power & Light. Benson offered an e-mail address: urbandresscodes@gmail.com. There's also a Facebook page.
Zed Smith, Cordish's director of operations, stood to the side as as the prospective plaintiffs (Benson needs a right-to-sue letter before he can file a case) addressed the media. Smith would not comment on the allegations about the August night at Mosiac. He stated that Power & Light does not discriminate in "any form or fashion."
Smith said that every tenant in the Power & Light District must comply with the dress code the city created earlier this year. Staff, he continued, receives regular training, and he noted that Cordish had engaged Harmony, a Kansas City human-relations company that develops "cultural competence."
Smith stressed that the district receives 6 million visits in a year. Asked why Cordish insists on using a dress code, given its tendency to incite controversy, Smith cited a Kansas City police report which states that dress codes help improve public safety.
Benson did not call on Cordish to eliminate attire from consideration. "We don't care about dress codes," he said. "We care about race discrimination."
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