American retail corporation, Walmart, is going to stop storing "multicultural" beauty products behind locked glass cases after customers protested online.
This comes after a man's tweet went viral after he pointed out that hair products for black people were locked but those for white people were not.
The change in policy was also prompted by a CBS News report on the 8th of June, which stated that a Walmart customer had complained that the practice was discriminatory against people of colour, while visiting a store in Denver, Colorado.
"The multicultural hair care is all locked behind the glass. That's so ridiculous," Lauren Epps, an African-American woman, was quoted as saying.
"We have made the decision to discontinue placing multicultural hair care and beauty products in locked cases," the company said in an email statement released on Wednesday, per The Independent.
The retailer claimed that the policy was in place in about a dozen of its 4,700 nationwide stores, and that it was to deter shoplifters from products including, electronics, automotive, cosmetics, and other personal care products.
The backlash against Walmart follows widespread protesting against racial discrimination and police brutality in the United States, after the killing of George Floyd.
Floyd, a black man, was arrested by Minneapolis police on Monday, May 25, for reportedly using a counterfeit $20 note in a store. While being detained, ex-cop Derek Chauvin - a 19-year veteran of the force - knelt on his neck for eight minutes and 46 seconds.
Chauvin faces charges of second-degree murder and manslaughter, while the three other arresting officers are charged with aiding and abetting murder.
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