Associated Press
A South Carolina barbecue chain known for its pro-segregation stance in a landmark 1960s case and its embrace of the Confederate flag in 2000 is facing allegations of racism and sexual harassment by the fired general manager of one of its restaurants. According to a lawsuit filed this week by a Black woman who worked at a Maurice’s Piggie Park BBQ location in Columbia, the man who ran it, general manager Jeff Harrison, coerced her early last year into a sexual relationship with promises of a raise, which he paid. In a separate lawsuit brought last month by Damien Wooden, another Black former employee, Wooden contends that Harrison left him racist voicemails including slurs and threatening to break his jaw after he told Harrison to stop calling and harassing the female employee who quit.