ROANOKE TIMES
Copyright (c) 1995, Roanoke Times
DATE: Friday, December 22, 1995 TAG: 9512220046
SECTION: VIRGINIA PAGE: B-5 EDITION: METRO
DATELINE: RICHMOND
SOURCE: Associated Press
The Virginia NAACP said Thursday that blacks should consider whether they want to shop at Circuit City stores in light of the Richmond company's lack of a response to its request to discuss allegations of discrimination.
Salim Khalfani, branch and field activities coordinator for Virginia, said the civil rights group is not calling for a boycott of Circuit City.
``We're asking our constituents in the community to look at where they're spending their money,'' he said Thursday. ``We need to consider and evaluate how people treat us.''
Federal lawsuits were filed about seven weeks ago on behalf of dozens of blacks, accusing the giant electronics chain of discriminating against black employees.
The NAACP on Dec. 12 sent a letter to the company's chairman and chief executive officer, Richard L. Sharp, asking for a discussion of the issues, Khalfani said.
Ann M. Collier, spokeswoman for Circuit City, said Thursday that the letter did not arrive in Sharp's office until Tuesday. But she said the company cannot discuss the matter with any group while litigation is still pending.
``It is our policy not to discriminate,'' Collier said. ``We take the complaints in the lawsuit very seriously.''
LENGTH: Short : 34 linesby CNB