Protest outside JD Sports shop that was the scene of a racist incident last month
Several dozen protesters gathered outside a branch of the British-owned sportswear chain JD Sports at the Médiacité shopping centre in Liège on Saturday. It was at this branch of JD Sports that a racist incident took place at the end of last month. Footage of the incident was published online last weekend. The shop remained closed for the duration of the protest that passed without incident.
Two weeks ago the then manageress of the store in Médiacité was filmed asking her staff to form three queues to be searched for stolen goods. Searches of staff at the end of the working day are common practice at JD Sports.
However, what was different here was that the manageress asked her staff to form queues according to their ethnic origin. As we reported on Saturday she used racially offensive language while making her request. The woman was detained by police and questioned on Friday.
As we also reported previously two JD Sports shops in Belgium, one elsewhere in Liège and one in Brussels, have been attacked and looted since the incident. On Saturday several dozen protesters staged a demonstration the discrimination against people of black African heritage.
Also on Saturday was the opening of a new JD Sports store at Wijnegem Shpping Centre near Antwerp. There was a large police presence at the shopping, but no incidents occurred.