Taco Bell Employee Fired for Wearing a "Black Lives Matter" Mask at Work.

We've said it time and time again. Black people in this country are facing two different pandemics. The newer COVID-19 pandemic and the centuries old pandemic of racism.

With COVID-19 many of us are required to wear masks, covering our nose and mouth, if we interact with the public or are in crowded public areas. The essential fast food workers are no different.

I've been to several fast food chains since the pandemic started and I can say everyone working the drive through, and even on the cooking crew, are wearing masks. Some are decorated with sports teams, some are cute patters and some are, regular run-of-the-mill, plain white masks. Just yesterday I complimented a cashier on her galaxy colored mask and asked where she got it from.

I've NEVER pulled up to an establishment and didn't see a patterned mask at one of the windows or in the food prep area.

We all know that Black men, and women, have been under extreme scrutiny as of late and we're finally pushing back and taking a stand. With the death of Ahmaud Arbery, Breonna Taylor and George Floyd, the citizens of the United States have been in a state of unrest.

There's tension everywhere you turn, even on your job. Denzel Skinner, of Boardman, Ohio, is a Black man who works at a Taco Bell restaurant. Yesterday, Skinner went to work for his regular shift wearing a "Black Lives Matter" mask and was almost immediately asked to remove his mask or leave the property. The double edge sword came in to play when his manager told him that, if he left, he was "done".

Rightfully upset, Skinner refused to take off his mask and went to his car to separate himself from the situation. While sitting in his car Skinner went live on Facebook to tell his friends what happened. While he was in his car, still live on social media, Skinner's manager came to his car to "talk to him". It went left from there. We will warn you that the video contains strong language.

Take a look.

If you're wondering what was actually said about the mask, Skinner posted the screenshots of the conversation between the store management. NO WHERE in the text message does it say that the mask had to be plain.

The manager, identified only as Nicole, kept saying that it was a "company thing" and she had to do what the "company said" when it clearly doesn't say anything about they type of mask only that the mask be clean.

We'd love to see the actual "Mask guide" to see if it has anything printed on it concerning the design of the mask. Somehow, we thing it may be amended shortly to include the word "plain".

For someone to tell another person that they "don't get it" when the issue at hand CLEARLY impacts their life is wildly absurd. Mr. Skinner stood up for what he felt was right which, he had every constitutional right to do. We don't believe it had to escalate this far but, sometimes the final straw is just that.

We reached out to Taco Bell and so far, no one has responded.

If you were in this situation, what would you have done? Do you think Mr. Skinner had a legal right to wear his mask? Share your thoughts in the comments down below.