22 December 2023 , 13:13
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A Walmart shopper who believes he was unfairly judged at a self-checkout because of his tattoos and hoodie has come up with a cheeky response.
Andrew "Drew" Delgado got tired of being singled out by people checking his receipt at his local Walmart in Lacey, New Jersey.
Andrew felt he was being "profiled" because he wore a hoodie and had many tattoos. He noticed that other customers having their receipts checked looked similar to him. "I felt like I was profiled because I wear a hoodie and have a lot of tattoos. That day, there were probably seven or other people walking out with me," Andrew said.
"One was a mum with her kids and a shopping trolley full of unbagged items. They didn't stop her." Andrew was allegedly stopped by staff when he tried to leave the store. This surprised him as he visits the shop multiple times a week and expected to be recognised. But the employees at Walmart didn't believe him.
So, instead of getting angry on-site, Andrew decided to come up with a cheeky idea to get back at them. On Facebook, Andrew sarcastically launched the "Walmart Self-Checkout Employee Christmas Party", a celebration for all the shoppers who have to scan the items themselves.
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Walmart stores are hugely popular in the US (Corbis via Getty Images)The event started as a joke about Walmart making customers scan their own items, but it turned into something big with 48,000 people interested. Andrew said, "I only posted the event on two Facebook groups," and "And then, I just left it alone and didn't think about it...until the notifications started coming in."
But instead of poking fun at Walmart, Andrew and the shoppers decided to throw a Christmas party to help others. They collected gifts for kids and pets, with even the Walmart Store Manager chipping in.
Andrew, who owns an auto shop, was too busy to plan the party, so his wife Nicole helped out. She made lists for presents, focusing on children and animals, and the local Elks club offered to help too.
Mark from the Elks club mentioned, "I saw they needed a place for people to drop off things," and "I told them we could set things up here outside and would also have Santa here with his sleigh."
Andrew revealed that over 1,000 families benefited from the festive event, with boxes brimming with donated toys and gifts. The local food bank also received nappies, baby milk, food and other essentials.
Despite his disappointment at what he claims is profiling with the receipt-checking, Andrew has no issue with the self-checkout process itself. The Mirror has reached out to Walmart for a response to these allegations of profiling.
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