The black Barneys shopper who was accosted and jailed after buying a $350 belt in New York expressed his disappointment on the stance taken by rap royalty Jay Z, who chose to retain his business connections with the retail giant despite the loud outcry from critics.
Trayvon Christian, 19, was racially profiled during his acquisition of the $350 Salvatore Ferragamo belt. Afterwards, of course, the teen was stopped by undercover officers who were allegedly called on by a Barneys sales clerk who believed the transaction was fraudulent.
Jay Z endured a fierce backlash from fans and critics alike — sans the Rev. Al Sharpton — who looked askance at the music mogul when he failed to denounce Barneys and, instead, justified why he would continue to do business with the upscale store.
Christian expressed that he was disappointed and hurt that the Jigga Man would not immediately sever business relations with Barneys.
“I though that he (Jay Z) could related to what happened to … to what happened to me.”
When the teenager was asked if he was surprised that Jay Z decided to keep working with Barneys, he says:
“Right.”
Do you believe that Hov has a responsibility to publicly chastise Barneys and cut ties to the store over racial profiling? Tell us what you think?
