Last week as Ashley Usher-Coleman left Whole Foods Market on Green Bay Road with her $80 in groceries she was stopped by security for an unpaid bottle of vitamins. Rather than being redirected to pay for this missed item she was charged with a misdemeanor. This was after the security guard admitted to watching her and said it looked like an honest mistake. This was also after the security guard offered to let her go with a warning if she signed a paper stating she had shoplifted. She was put in handcuffs after she refused to sign the paper without speaking to a lawyer and requested to speak with her husband. Whole Foods should drop all charges against Ashley Usher-Coleman because she was targeted as a black woman and not treated appropriately by their security.

Ashley is a generous, compassionate, and empathetic person with a very high moral code. She has been a resident of Evanston, IL for years and many people in the community can vouch for her character. Whole Foods subjected Ashley to an arrest which induced a panic attack over an honest mistake. A mistake that other people are allowed to correct by simply purchasing the missed item.

Whole Foods and the security guard need to recognize their active participation in white privilege and racism. This petition is to urge Whole Foods to drop all charges and issue an apology to Ashley for the terrible way they handled this situation. If we are not going to tolerate racism any longer in our country then companies like Whole Foods need to actively participate by doing their part in treating all of their customers fairly.

Read Ashley's full story here: https://www.facebook.com/aushercoleman/posts/849903649787