LATEST Feb. 12, 3:20 p.m. The protest mentioned in this story, which was slated to take place on Sunday at The Girl & The Fig, has been canceled.
“We will continue to hold G&F [The Girl & The Fig] accountable,” read a Friday afternoon Instagram post from the organizer of the protest. "Their statement is a PR stunt to gain sympathy. This event was cancelled not to retreat, but in respect for the QTBIPOC community in Sonoma."
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The Girl & The Fig, the popular upscale Sonoma restaurant that has been embroiled in controversy over a former employee's Black Lives Matter mask this week, has released an apology on their Facebook page:
"the girl & the fig prides itself in creating an inclusive, diverse and welcoming environment for our staff and our guests since we began 23 years ago. We thought we understood the Black Lives Matter movement and were being appropriately supportive. The events of this past week have demonstrated that we have more learning and listening to do to deepen awareness of the right ways to be the best advocate we can be for the Black community.
"We sincerely apologize to our employees, patrons, and the Sonoma County community for any missteps we have taken in introducing and communicating the reasoning for our face mask policy."
Former Girl & The Fig server Kimi Stout told SFGATE that she felt forced to quit her job after being asked to remove her Black Lives Matter mask at work. While the incident transpired back in September 2020, she only recently went public with a video on her Instagram.
"I was told by the president of the company that if I did not change my mask I would not be allowed to work and that BLM is 'too political,'" read her caption.
John Toulze, president of The Girl & The Fig, has maintained that the restaurant was only enforcing its new mask policy. In a statement to SFGATE, he wrote that the restaurant created a "formal face mask policy" for employees in September 2020, which specified that staff should wear "a The Girl & The Fig branded mask provided, or a plain black or blue surgical mask to provide flexibility but still align with the dress code."
On Wednesday, The Girl & The Fig announced that it would be closing temporarily because of all the threats and backlash they were receiving (Stout has also revealed on Instagram that she has received death threats since the story was picked up by numerous media outlets). Plans for a Feb. 14 protest outside the restaurant were also circulating on social media.
The Wine Country restaurant initially responded to the controversy Wednesday on their Facebook page, writing, "This entire incident has exploded over an employee that did not want to follow the rules. Plain and simple. We did not fire her, we did not force her out, she made her own decision to quit because she did not want to follow the rules."
Stout responded in an interview with ABC7, saying, "No, I was not fired. But I had no choice based on principle. They are a business. It was nothing illegal. But in my opinion, it was not morally right," and, "I think they valued a uniform policy over showing support for marginalized lives."
But the tone of the restaurant's new statement Thursday was different. After apologizing, The Girl & The Fig promised to take new measures to demonstrate their support for the Black community, including mandatory all-staff diversity and inclusion training, compensation for their employees with standard wages they would have earned this week during the restaurant's closure, an immediate contribution to the 15 Percent Pledge (an effort calling on major retailers to dedicate 15% of their shelf space to Black-owned businesses), and continuing to be an "active Sonoma Strong advocate," using their resources to support the hospitality industry to recover after devastating wildfires and a pandemic.
"We have been changed forever by this situation," continued the statement. "We are committing significant resources to be better educated and ensure we demonstrate our intended sincerity and support for Black Lives Matter and the Black community. ... We are Sonoma Strong. We know that with compassion and a commitment to learning we will be the proud community partner and leader we seek to be."
On her Instagram story, Stout expressed her approval of the apology, and called for the planned demonstration on Valentine's Day to go forward, but with a different intention.
"What if this Sunday’s demonstration turns into a celebration? That we won, that we are stronger together, that we can be better together if we hold each other accountable?" said Stout in a video. "Let's celebrate that we're making a difference."
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February 13, 2021 at 04:22AM
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Popular Sonoma restaurant apologizes after Black Lives Matter mask backlash - SF Gate
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