A woman from Los Angeles has claimed she was denied service at a Dunkin' Donuts branch because she was deaf. To hear her story, watch below:
Shannon posted an emotional video on TikTok (@shannon_heroux) to explain what happened.
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In the clip, a teary Shannon said: "A little while ago, I got refused service at a Dunkin Donuts because I'm deaf.
"I didn't know how to process it. I was confused. I couldn't hear anything.
"I wear a cochlear implant, but I was not wearing it at that time.
"I've never been refused service before, and it hurts. It hurts really bad.
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"Dunkin' Donuts is my favourite place to go.
"I called this girl over, told her I was deaf, I have to read her lips and she didn't take her mask off."
Shannon then explained she's an Uber driver and was in a rush to receive her order so she could carry on with her job.
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The member of staff was then said to call a manager over.
She continued: "The manager comes over and I can just tell by his body language, he was going off and kept doing this (waving his hand across his face) and I kept saying 'I can't hear you, I can't hear you, I need to lip read'.
"He refused to write anything down. He refused to pull his mask down. We're six feet apart. There's a plexiglass to the side. I'm wearing my mask. What more do you want from us?
"We struggle so much during this pandemic. Enough is enough."
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"People don't believe I'm deaf, and I could sense and feel from him that he didn't believe me.
"He didn't believe I was deaf because I speak so well. It's a blessing and a curse."
The video was posted 12 days ago (13 Sep) and it has since racked up 13.3 million views and 2.5 million likes.
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One user wrote: "Not going @Dunkin' again until they give the huge apology they owe her."
A second added: "@Dunkin' do something.
The company, however, responded to the claims and in a follow up-video posted 2 days ago (23 Sep), Shannon said the manager 'apologised' for his actions along with Dunkin' Donuts' corporate office and franchise owner.
She also claimed she met with the owner to discuss some possible ways to prevent a similar incident happening again.
The solutions they apparently came up with were: clear masks, keeping a whiteboard handy, having a laminated menu so deaf folks can circle their order and sensitivity training.
LADbible has contacted Dunkin' Donuts for comment.
Featured Image Credit: TikTok/@shannon_herouxTopics: Viral, Los Angeles, TikTok, US