Black hotel guest had to make ‘no party’ promise, unlike white customers
A black woman was required to sign a document promising she wouldn’t get rowdy inside an Oregon hotel – a pledge other white guests weren’t required to make, a new lawsuit claims.
Felicia Gonzales, 51, alleges that a front desk clerk at the Residence Inn by Marriott Portland Downtown/Convention Center told her that all guests were mandated to sign a two-page “no party policy” prior to checking in, The Oregonian reports.
The policy was enacted to inform guests of noise limits at the hotel, but wasn’t intended to “insinuate any distrust in the ‘average’ guest,” according to the policy, which was provided by Gonzales’ attorneys.
But after checking in, Gonzales, who is a Marriott rewards member, watched white guests complete the registration process without signing the pledge, the lawsuit claims.
“Having to sign a ‘NO PARTY’ policy form did not feel right to Ms. Gonzales, so she went back to the front desk,” the filing reads. “Ms. Gonzales observed as multiple Caucasian guests checked in. None of them were asked to sign a ‘NO PARTY’ policy.”
Gonzales, of California, said she never had any prior issues with the hotel chain. She signed the policy “so she could get into her room” ahead of a five-night stay in January 2019 while visiting relatives in Portland, according to the lawsuit, which seeks $300,000 in damages.
A Marriott spokesperson, meanwhile, told The Post that the company does not comment on pending litigation, but noted that the hotel where Gonzales stayed is a franchise operated by a third-party management firm.
Gonzales’ lawsuit, which cites her “feelings of racial stigmatization” during the incident, may later be amended to add $1 million in punitive damages, The Oregonian reports.
Photo Credit: Google Maps