AMC kicks Bishop Barber out of The Color Purple screening. Okay, that's the movie the bishop went to see and was told, you're out of here. Let's give you the video because they didn't just kick him out, [00:00:15] the police were called. >> Speaker 2: I wanna take you out. >> Speaker 3: I cannot go out. >> Speaker 2: Okay, I'm gonna tell you, you gotta remove the property and I'm gonna take you out and I'll charge you up my car, that's fine. >> Speaker 3: If you want to take me out and leave the property, then I'll do that. >> Speaker 2: That's what I wanna do. >> Speaker 3: All right, well, [INAUDIBLE]. [00:01:01] >> Speaker 2: Do you guys wanna assist him? Okay, well, I'm gonna tell him to stop the program for everybody [INAUDIBLE]. >> Speaker 3: He could take me out if you take me out. [00:01:17] But I want folks to get a note. >> Speaker 3: See what they do to people, y'all know this is Bishop Barber. [00:01:33] I want the children to see this but we gonna deal with it. I've been in the White House with this chair. They've called an officer of the law, the AME Theater in Greenville, North Carolina. They would not make amends to simply do the right thing. But we'll deal with it, they brought this officer. [00:01:50] What's your name? Can I shake your hand? >> Speaker 3: Yeah, absolutely. >> Speaker 3: This is officer Raymond, I want to know your name. >> Speaker 2: Yeah, that's fine. No problem. >> Speaker 2: All right, thank you guys. Appreciate your cooperation, sorry for the way this turned out. >> Speaker 3: We'll be back in a little bit. >> Speaker 2: Okay, that's fine but you do have to leave the. [00:02:07] >> Speaker 1: Hope everyone in Greenville, North Carolina going to the movies feels a lot safer now. Okay, as the bishop was escorted out by the police, several officers on the scene. Does everyone feel safe now? A threat is out of the movie theater, Bishop Barber preaching on his way out. [00:02:26] A dispute about movie theater seating led to the removal of Bishop William J Barber II, former chair of the North Carolina NAACP. Prominent civil rights activist from a Greenville, North Carolina movie theater. The incident happened Tuesday afternoon when Bishop Barber went to [00:02:45] the AMC Fire Tower 12 theater to see a much heralded, The Color Purple. Who did he take as his date? His 90 year old mother, okay? You happy? You proud? As ABC 11 reports, Barbara uses two canes due to difficulty walking and [00:03:05] sitting in certain chairs because of a form of arthritis he has, which causes inflammation in the joints and ligaments of the spine. Bishop usually takes his own chair, which resembles a bar chair to public events. [00:03:21] They probably should have seating for people who have other afflictions that can't sit comfortably in a movie theater seat, okay? They probably should have something for someone who, I don't know, colors outside the lines because of a physical ailment. [00:03:39] It's my thought, just my thought. That's what he did Tuesday, setting it up in the theaters section designated for people with disabilities. However, he claims he was told that was not allowed. Eventually, conversations between Barber and a theater staffer escalated. [00:03:56] Greenville police were called, wonder if they had the sirens going, lights flashing, when they pulled up to this amazing threat. Police responded about 3:20 PM. This is in the afternoon after they were told that a customer was arguing with [00:04:13] employees and they wished to have them removed from the business. ABC 11, gotta be careful what you tell the police. >> Speaker 2: That's right. >> Speaker 1: Belligerent black man in a theater, I'm surprised they didn't come in with guns drawn. This is over a chair and a disability? [00:04:30] Police supervisor went to the theater, spoke with everyone and Barbara agreed to leave theater voluntarily, police said. Barbara was already outside when a second police supervisor arrived, two supervisors, and the conflict was resolved without incident. No charges were filed. [00:04:46] In a video, Barber appeared to say staffers told him the positioning of his chair was a fire hazard, okay? In a statement, he wrote in part, this is about how people with disabilities, regardless of race, color, creed or sexual orientation, should be treated fairly. [00:05:03] With all the issues and real battles going on in the world, for managers of a theater to decide they can't accommodate you and would rather remove you from a theater is absurd. Which is why I prayed for them. [00:05:19] Boy, he got them, didn't he? He got them. I'm gonna just pray for you. I'm gonna just pray for you. That's what the bishop does, no matter who it is. In this case, praying for someone he vehemently disagrees with. In a statement, AMC apologized for the incident and stated AMC chairman and [00:05:39] CEO, Adam Aaron, telephoned the bishop about plans to meet with him in person next week to discuss the situation. He looks tired already. I mean, I'm sure this is an older picture, but the CEO of AMC looks tired after this drama that was unnecessary. [00:05:58] Just my commentary there, AMC's statement continued. AMC welcomes guests with disabilities. We have a number of accommodations in place at our theaters at all times, and our theater teams work hard to accommodate guests who have needs that fall outside of the normal course of business. [00:06:14] We encourage guests who require special seating to speak with a manager in advance to see what can best be accommodated at the theater to ensure a safe and enjoyable experience for the guests and those around them. We're also reviewing our policies with our theater teams to help ensure [00:06:30] that situations like this do not occur again. In a statement from Repairers of the Breach, Barber social movement group. Barber agreed to meet with AMC's Aaron next week and was hopeful it would lead to just and good things for those with disabilities. [00:06:49] Barber held a news conference today in Greenville, her ABC News. He said he placed his share in a section specifically designated for guests with disabilities, which prompted safety concerns from theater employees. Barber alleged he was threatened with trespassing charges when he refused [00:07:05] to leave. The incident later prompted a conversation about accommodations for disabled people and accessibility in public places. So a couple of things before I turn it over to you, Ida. Somebody's gonna write a check that's gonna help Bishop Barber do some good [00:07:22] things in the community. That's just what I see. I've got like this, I'm not exactly a fortune teller, but I kind of can see what's going down here. CEO is going to meet with him. He's gonna write check because this was wrong. And if it's an area where perhaps wheelchairs are allowed to park it and [00:07:38] watch the movie, I'm not sure what makes the chair an additional fire hazard. But then again, I'm not in the movie theater business. But why you would threaten this person, it leads me to believe that you saw a black man, you weren't gonna argue with him, and so you just decided, move along. [00:07:54] And if I'm the CEO, because you can't legislate everything. You can't draw policies to deal with every situation. I want smart, resourceful human beings working for me, and I don't want people who draw attention like this. [00:08:11] And the popo shows up in the middle of what? The Color Purple. Really? That's just my thought, Ida, how about yours? >> I agree with you. I think when we talk about these things, we gotta go back a little bit and [00:08:28] understand why some people will defend and say, hey, this is a person at their job and they're doing their job and they're following the rules. The cop comes there, they're there to enforce. [00:08:45] They cannot re-establish what the establishment or the business's rules are. They have to enforce the law, blah, blah, blah. Sure. But I just really want people to understand that when [00:09:00] people see black and brown people as less than human, when they don't see a full human being there. All possibilities for empathy, consideration, they're all out of the window. [00:09:17] And so when you hear these stories and people say, well, he was following the rules, imagine Allah, Matthew McConaughey, and a time to kill. If that would have been an older white gentleman with his older mother, [00:09:32] would they have been treated the same? Now we can only speculate that it would be different because we can't for sure say that it wasn't. This person could just be ageist and could do that to anybody. But I'm inclined to believe that there's less [00:09:50] compassion when it comes to people of color because a lot of these people don't see us as full human beings. And so this is why we fight, because you can, and well within your right feel whatever way you want about me. [00:10:12] My issue is when those beliefs are interrupting my pursuit of life, happiness and fullness. And that is where we have the issue. I don't give a damn about these racist white people in this country. [00:10:28] I don't like you either. I don't care about those people. Just stay out of my way. >> Speaker 1: Yeah, can we just leave each other alone? And you're exactly right, because again, I don't wanna hear anymore about, we need more police training. [00:10:43] No, I can't get you to see me as a human being by giving you police training. I just can't, it's like Barack Obama said, we can't bomb everyone. We have to reach hearts and minds, and we're still not getting it. We're still not getting it. [00:10:58] You are so right.