ST. LOUIS -- The Adam's Mark hotel company has "suffered damage" in
the wake of a federal suit, launched by the Department of Justice
in December, that accuses the hotel company of a pattern of
discrimination against minorities, according to Fred Kummer,
president and chief executive officer of HBE Corp., which owns the
hotel chain.
The damage includes cancellations by some sizable convention
business, including the Episcopal Church of America and Human
Rights Campaign, a national gay and lesbian organization.
The federal case arose out of a lawsuit brought against the St.
Louis-based hotel company by five attendees of the 1999 Black
College Reunion in Daytona Beach, Fla.
The plaintiffs accused the Adam's Mark Daytona Beach of
requiring them to wear wristbands and overcharging for rooms, among
other things. Adam's Mark, however, maintains that it is clear of
any wrongdoing.
Attorneys met with the Department of Justice officials on Feb.
10 to discuss the suit. "We're going to have to do what we think is
right, but I do believe the Department of Justice has gone after a
very good company," said Kummer.
He pointed to the company's diversity. According to Kummer,
60.8% of the company's employees and 27.5% of its managers are
minorities.
Adam's Mark, a private company, is seeking to quickly reach a
resolution with the Department of Justice. The company will stick
by its guns in enforcing group and convention contracts. Groups
that back out will have to pay cancellation fees, which can be
considerable sums.
"There are some people who would like to cancel and would like
to convict us when we've only been charged," said Kummer. "We have
told everyone who comes to talk to us about cancelling, we've told
them we expect them to abide by the contract. We will honor our
commitment to you and we expect you to honor our commitment to
us."
Some agents, meanwhile, have chosen to send their business
elsewhere.
Alfreda Broughton, owner/manager of Nicole's Travel, South
Orange, N.J., hasn't booked anyone into an Adam's Mark property
since she learned of the suit in December.
"Anytime there's a lawsuit against anything in the travel
industry, when there's discrimination, I won't use them," she said
Broughton. "That's any discrimination, gay or lesbian, black or
white, I don't support it."
Broughton said she knew other agencies were taking the same
course. Until the suit is settled or moves forward, however, the
hotel company is only facing charges of discrimination. But
Broughton will wait until the coast is clear before booking Adam's
Mark again.
"If they find the allegations were false, then I'll go back and
support them," said Broughton.
Hector Diaz, owner of Cruise Experts in Miami, Fla., said that
although his agency doesn't book hotels any more, he wouldn't book
a company that faced charges of discrimination.
"If they're proven innocent, people will feel for them, and do
what's possible to help them out. God forbid if they're guilty," he
said.