Black Disabled Veteran 'Indelibly Scarred' by Racist Slur at Restaurant
A Black disabled US veteran and his wife have filed a multi-million dollar lawsuit against the national restaurant chain Buffalo Wild Wings, alleging a manager intentionally printed a vile racial epithet on their takeaway order. The incident, which occurred in November 2024, has left the couple, Marc and Natasha Loman, profoundly distressed.
The Shocking Discovery in Woodbridge
According to a civil rights lawsuit obtained by The Independent, the Lomans visited the Buffalo Wild Wings location in Woodbridge, Virginia, for a late-night meal on 2 November 2024. After finishing their food and requesting leftovers to be boxed up, they later made a sickening discovery. Instead of their name, the order receipt and the accompanying bag were labelled with the abbreviation "n*gs", a shortened form of the N-word.
For 37-year-old Marc Loman, a disabled veteran who grew up in the Deep South, the slur was described in the legal complaint as reopening "deep emotional wounds". The court documents state the racist term was reminiscent of the pervasive and degrading racism he experienced in his youth. The complaint argues that the employee who entered the slur into the restaurant's point-of-sale system knew it would cause severe emotional distress.
Corporate Response and Legal Action
The couple reported the incident to Buffalo Wild Wings corporate headquarters. The following day, a company Vice President allegedly called the Lomans and confirmed that an unnamed kitchen manager at the Woodbridge restaurant had intentionally placed the racial slur on their order. The VP stated that the employee had been fired as a consequence.
Natasha Loman, 48, who is a co-plaintiff in the suit, immediately left a one-star review on Yelp and posted a video on TikTok to share their experience. The lawsuit, initially filed in Prince William County Circuit Court and later moved to federal court, accuses the chain of intentional infliction of emotional distress, among other charges.
The Lomans are now seeking a $5 million judgment plus $350,000 in punitive damages from Buffalo Wild Wings and its corporate parent, Blazin' Wings, Inc. They are also asking for pre- and post-judgment interest, court costs, and attorney's fees. The legal filing states that Marc Loman missed work and sought counselling following the traumatic event.
A History of Discrimination Allegations
This is not the first time Buffalo Wild Wings has faced allegations of discrimination. In 2019, two employees in Illinois were fired after asking Black customers to move because a white patron did not want to sit near them. In a separate 2018 incident, the company offered free wings for a year to a homeless man in Louisiana after his receipt was marked with a derogatory term. Employees have also been subjected to racism, with one server in Illinois reportedly told to "go back to Africa" on a credit card receipt.
A spokesperson for Buffalo Wild Wings did not respond to a request for comment on the Friday the story broke. The chain, founded in 1982, operates over 1,300 locations globally and promotes a "welcoming neighbourhood atmosphere."
