Why was McDonald’s sued over Latino scholarships? Drama explained as lawsuit settles 

McDonald’s has been making the headlines time and again. Between new releases and collaborations, the global food chain has also been in the middle of controversies. On January 13, the American Alliance for Equal Rights (AAER) filed a lawsuit against McD and International Scholarship and Tuition Services, challenging the legality of the HACER National Scholarship Program.

Founded in 1985, the Program awards scholarships to children with at least one Hispanic/Latino parent. According to the press release by AAER, the criteria bars students from the Non-Hispanic communities from receiving the scholarship.

McDonald’s likely to make changes in its Latino scholarships

In a press release, Edward Blum, President of AAER, highlighted the reasons for filing the lawsuit against McD. He highlighted some discrepancies in McD’s civil-rights audit and noted,

“It is astonishing that after what McDonald’s describes as a comprehensive civil-rights audit of its programs and policies, the Hispanic-only HACER scholarship was not flagged for likely being a violation of our nation’s civil rights laws.”

According to AAER, the scholarship’s criteria goes against the Civil Rights Act (1866). Section 1981 of the act bars racial bias and discrimination in contracting. Blum added,

“It is our hope that McDonald’s immediately pauses this scholarship program so it can be opened to all under-resourced high school students regardless of their ethnic heritage.”

On January 31, McDonald’s reportedly said it had settled with AAER. The fast-food chain revealed they will modify the criteria for the HACER National Scholarship Program but not eliminate it. Additionally, they noted that they have reached an agreement with AAER that the latter will review the applications for the year.

The fast-food chain received more than 3000 applications from students. The statement stated that it will consider applications from students who are involved with the Latino community or can demonstrate their commitment towards it.

McDonald’s has been in the limelight for its inclusivity and diversity in company policies. With AAERS’s lawsuit, the food chain’s policies have again been brought into the spotlight. While the parties have made a settlement, McD noted that it will only change the criteria and not eliminate it.

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