Cambridge family accuses Danvers farm of racial profiling
Employees search bags, call police over loose apples
A Cambridge family says workers at a Danvers farm falsely accused them of stealing apples while they went apple picking there on Labor Day, as the farm’s employees searched their bags and called the police on them.
Connors Farm initially did not issue an apology to the Black couple on Thursday, saying they can check anyone’s bags at the orchard. But in a post Thursday afternoon, the farm said they “regret the incident” and they have “extended our personal apology to the family.”
Also, the Danvers Police officer who responded to the incident initially accused the family of “playing the race card,” a comment that town officials addressed on Thursday.
The Cambridge couple — Manikka Bowman, who’s the vice chair of the Cambridge School Committee, and her husband Jeff Myers — brought their 7-year-old and 18month-old to Connors Farm “as the last fun summer adventure before school starts,” the couple wrote in an online post.
The family was having a great time, but the day “took a turn for the worse” as they were leaving the apple orchard area.
A security officer stopped them for having too many apples that were not in the designated apple bag, the couple wrote. The bag, which had been placed at the bottom of their stroller, had fallen over and some of the fruit had fallen out.
“They then proceeded to search my purse for more ‘concealed’ fruit,” the couple wrote. “Of course, there wasn’t any!”
“As it became apparent that the security guards, along with a third employee who was located in the farm building, were accusing our family of stealing, our outrage at the false accusation and the embarrassment and confusion it was causing us grew stronger,” they added.
The couple said the incident caused their 7-year-old to burst into tears.
“What made them suspect us of stealing?” they wrote. “Had our skin color influenced their thinking? Were we presumed guilty because we are an African American family?”
The couple said they want a written apology from the farm’s owners, and for the staff and Danvers Police to undergo diversity, equity and inclusion training.
Connors Farm wrote in a Facebook post early Thursday, “Just a friendly reminder that we reserve the right to inspect all backpacks, bags and strollers that exit our orchard.” That post was later deleted.
Then on Thursday afternoon, the farm wrote, “We regret the incident that happened this past weekend. We have extended our personal apology to the family. We do our best to train our employees to handle all customer issues with courtesy and respect at all times. We are taking further steps to ensure that staff will undergo diversity, equity and inclusion training. Please know that everybody is welcome on our farm.”
Danvers town officials also responded to the incident and the “racially insensitive comment” made by the police officer.
“The Town extends its apologies for the unsettling experience the family had at a local business and for the comment made by a Danvers employee,” the town officials said. “Let us be very clear, discriminatory behavior has no place in Danvers, or in any community.”