Kicked Off Train for 'Laughing While Black' and They Get An Apology — AFTER the Incident Went Viral

These members of a book club had the "audacity" to laugh and have fun while touring the Napa Valley by train: Cops
were called and they were kicked off.

By Kristin J. Bender
The Napa Valley Wine Train issued an apology Tuesday to a book club that includes mostly black women who said they were booted from a tasting tour because of their race.

The company also promised additional training for employees on cultural diversity and sensitivity, and offered the group free passes for 50 people for a future trip.

“The Napa Valley Wine Train was 100 percent wrong in its handling of this issue,” CEO Anthony “Tony” Giaccio said in a statement. “We accept full responsibility for our failures and for the chain of events that led to this regrettable treatment of our guests.”

The 11 members of the book club, all but one of whom is African American, said rude employees ordered them off the train on Saturday, mid-journey, and marched them down several aisles to their embarrassment.

“We didn’t do anything wrong,” club member Lisa Johnson, who chronicled the episode in cellphone videos and social media, told KTVU Monday. “We still feel this is about race. We were singled out.”

One member of the group is 83.

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