sephora closes stores for diversity training after racially profiling sza

One month after pop star SZA was racially profiled in one of their Calabasas stores, Sephora has announced it will be hosting a day of diversity training at its U.S. stores, distribution centers, and corporate offices this week.

Lmao Sandy Sephora location 614 Calabasas called security to make sure I wasn’t stealing . We had a long talk. U have a blessed day Sandy

— SZA (@sza) May 1, 2019

“We have been informed of an incident at our Calabasas store and in addition to reaching out to SZA directly, we are gathering more information about the incident in order to take the proper next steps,” says Emily Shapiro, a spokeswoman for Sephora, in an email to Reuters. “We take complaints like this very seriously, profiling on the basis of race is not tolerated at Sephora.”

Claiming that the move for diversity training isn’t the result of any one incident, I’m forced to wonder how often POC are racially profiled and/or mistreated in Sephora stores besides SZA. Shapiro says that planning for “inclusivity workshops” has been in the works for several months and is part of a broader campaign called “We Belong to Something Beautiful,” which has been in development for at least a year.