This ‘world famous’ chicken restaurant in KCK is being sued for racial discrimination

A former employee claims Gus’s World Famous Fried Chicken created a “racially discriminatory environment” at its Kansas City, Kansas, location.

Tanesha Flowers filed a discrimination lawsuit Friday in U.S. Court for the District of Kansas, alleging that coworkers used the N-word and referred to black people as “colored.” Managers excused their behavior and then retaliated against Flowers, the lawsuit says.

Flowers, who is black, was hired as a cashier and server at the restaurant at 2816 West 47th Ave. in August 2022.

A white employee referred to her as “the colored girl with the curly hair,” the lawsuit said. A manager excused the white employee’s comments by saying she was from a small town, the lawsuit said.

Another employee used the N-word, called a mixed-race employee a “coon” and said he didn’t like “black girls from the ghetto,” the lawsuit says.

Flowers reported the employee’s comments, but according to the lawsuit, no action was taken.

The lawsuit also stated that for the same reason, black employees were reprimanded but white employees were not.

After Flowers filed an equal opportunity complaint, the restaurant retaliated against her by changing her work hours and firing her, the lawsuit says.

The restaurant did not immediately respond to a request for comment. The company has about three dozen locations across the country, including restaurants in Overland Park and Lee’s Summit, according to its website.

The Equal Employment Opportunity Commission in the United States issued a complaint in January.