The latest lead singer of the beloved Motown group The Four Tops says he was the victim of racial profiling and mistreatment at a Michigan hospital.
Twitter-verified Alexander Morris, who joined the group in 2019, went to Ascension Macomb hospital in Warren, a suburb of Detroit, earlier this month for breathing problems and heart palpitations. The Detroit News reports that while there, he says he was not believed when he said he was a singer for the legendary group. He was subsequently put in a straitjacket.
Morris says he was told to "sit his Black ass down" and that he was treated as if he has schizophrenia. He said in a press conference this week, "In February, I was performing at [the Grammys] honoring Berry Gordy and Smokey Robinson. Two months later, I'm in a straitjacket in the city I grew up in, my identity being denied and I'm being told that I'm insane or schizophrenic."
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The singer says he plans to file a federal lawsuit against Ascension, the parent company of the hospital. Among his claims is that staff at the hospital refused to look at his ID and that only after he showed a nurse a video of himself performing was he properly treated for his breathing issues and released from the straitjacket. Morris says after this ordeal, he was offered a $25 gift card for the misunderstanding. The singer says he had three seizures in the days that followed his entry to the hospital. He ended up staying in the hospital from April 7 to April 12, when he was discharged.
Ascension Michigan said in a statement, "We do not condone racial discrimination of any kind. We are unable to provide details on cases under investigation."
For Morris, it may have been a missed opportunity to put out a statement saying in response, "I can't help myself: I'm suing," but maybe that would have undercut the seriousness of the accusations.
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