KNOX COUNTY, Tenn. — A Knox County Commissioner is calling on the community to have their voices heard after a 15-year-old girl was fired from an independently owned McAlister's Deli in November when the Knox County Sheriff's Office publicly claimed the girl refused a deputy service.
On November 22, the Knox County Sheriff's Office said on social media that a deputy was refused service by a 15-year-old cashier at an independently-owned McAlister's on Schaad Road. The post sparked a wave of controversy over the Thanksgiving holiday.
The following day, the cashier's mother said her daughter intended no offense and that she had gone to ask for help from a co-worker as she approached the end of her shift. Chanada Robinson is the cashier's mother and the mother of Anthony Thompson Jr., who was shot and killed by Knoxville Police Department officers in April 2021. Her daughter is Thompson's sister.
Robinson also said KCSO's comments were untrue, and that they created a dangerous environment for her daughter, McAlister's co-workers and customers.
An attorney for the family, Margaret Held, also said the 15-year-old was fired because of the public comment from KCSO. Held said the restaurant did not take the girl's statement and did not talk to her. She also said the restaurant did not answer questions about video footage of the incident.
"The hidden truths of our heart are currently being exposed and is leading to the detriment of our county," said Dasha Lundy, a Knox County Commissioner. "Unfortunately, I have learned in my short time as the Commissioner for District 1, that we are in deep trouble as it relates to the care and compassion for the underserved, underrepresented, and the Black/Brown community."
She later said she was "deeply disturbed" by KCSO's stance on the controversy, and said she believed the accusations were most likely a miscommunication between all the people involved.
"We have a healing teen who has lost her brother and her first job with a 2-year time span," she said. "In the words of the late Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., 'Where do we go from here: Chaos or community?' I want to choose community, but chaos continues to overtake us."
Lundy called for the community to arrive at the Knox County Commission meeting on December 19 at 5 p.m. to speak about the controversy and any other issues. She said people should call 865-215-2534 to sign up for the public forum.