Over the weekend, a group of Black women enjoying themselves in California on the Napa Valley Wine Train were suddenly kicked off the tour for apparently laughing and talking too loudly. The incident took place this past Saturday and while the women were refunded, they’re seeking a full apology from the train company for their terrible experience.
The Napa Valley Wine Train ordeal was reported by SFGate.com, and featured comments from the women and from the train operator’s spokesperson as well. The ladies admitted that while they may have been boisterous at certain points, in no way did they think their joyous occasion would be seen as offensive.
From SFGate.com:
The incident began when [Lisa] Johnson and her book club, the Sisters on the Reading Edge, embarked around 11 a.m. for their annual trip through wine country — an adventure they had been planning since November.
Johnson, a self-described social media fanatic, posted pictures on Facebook, documenting the entire episode as it unfolded.
The women — all wearing matching T-shirts — were all seated in the same car in adjacent tables and seats, laughing and having a good time. They and the other passengers on the sold-out train were ordering tastings and glasses of wine as they rode the 18-mile stretch from Napa to St. Helena through California’s most famous and picturesque vineyards and wineries.
And while the group — which included an 83-year-old grandmother — may at times have been “rambunctious,” they were not “obnoxious or intoxicated,” Johnson said.
Several passengers, she said, even came up to them to take pictures, and asked about the romance novel they were reading for their club.
But a short while into their trip, Johnson said a manager on the train asked them to pipe it down.
“The train is set up to be with your friends, to drink wine and have a good time,” Johnson said. “We were thinking, ‘Who are we offending?’”
Later on, Johnson said the manager told them that “this isn’t going to work,” and that if they didn’t “tone it down,” they were going to be asked to get off the train.
“It was a bizarre thing for all of us,” she said, adding that many in the group quieted down and wondered what had happened.
According to Johnson, one of the women in the same car told the group “this isn’t a bar.”
“And we though, um, yes it is,” Johnson said.
What it appears is that the Sisters on the Reading Edge were doing what friends do in social spaces — have a good time with each other but the folks on the Napa Valley Wine Train couldn’t handle the turn up.
Either way, the Facebook posts and photos from Johnson tell a far different story than the management of the train claims was occurring so expect to hear more about this as the story develops. Check out photos from before and after the incident on the following pages.
—
Photo: Lisa Johnson/Facebook
1 2 3 4Next page »
