Movie theatre chain AMC has apologized to a North Carolina civil rights leader after he was kicked out of a screening of The Color Purple for trying to use his own chair in the disabled section.
The Rev William Barber, a former president of the NAACP North Carolina chapter, who suffers from a form of arthritis known as ankylosing spondylitis and walks with two canes, said that he tried to use a special chair he brought to an AMC Cineplex in Greenville on Tuesday afternoon and was told by staff he couldn’t.
Barber, 60, later told CNN that he has a medical condition that makes it impossible to sit in a regular chair. Barber shared a video of the incident that showed a stool-type chair with a backrest and no arms. (Barber has written for the Guardian.)
Police in Greenville confirmed that officers were called to the theatre around 3.20pm on Tuesday for a trespassing call and arrived to find a customer arguing with staff. No arrests were made.
The civil rights leader, who led the congregation at Greenleaf Christian church in Goldsboro, was attending the screening of the film, a musical adaptation of Alice Walker’s 1982 novel, with his elderly mother. He left the theatre with no issues, according to police.
AMC later apologized to Barber in a statement, saying: “We sincerely apologize to Bishop Barber for how he was treated, and for the frustration and inconvenience brought to him, his family, and his guests.
“AMC’s Chairman and CEO Adam Aron has already telephoned him, and plans to meet with him in person in Greenville, NC, next week to discuss both this situation and the good works Bishop Barber is engaged in throughout the years,” it added.
The theatre chain, the largest in the world with 2,807 screens in 353 European theatres and 7,755 screens in 593 American theatres, also said it welcomes guests with disabilities, and it encourages customers who require special seating to speak with a manager in advance.
“We are also reviewing our policies with our theater teams to help ensure that situations like this do not occur again,” AMC added, according to a report by North Carolina’s WITN.
Barber, who has previously spoken publicly about his condition, told the outlet he plans to hold a press conference on Thursday to address the issue.
